The Bet
by soxx
Summary: Wally goes through a series of bets...or insanity...either one. Watch and see how he copes with it all, being the kind of kid he is.
1. Rainy Day

_**MISCHEIF, MAYHEM, AND A PERSISTANT AUSSIE**_

Summary: Wallabe Beatles has been known for being challenged with various bets, especially by his best friend Hoagie P. Gilligan. They all seem harmless, and simply for amusement between the two boys… until one of these bets could put Wally at the edge of his sanity.

Disclaim:

Mr. W: Hey, do you wanna own the KND for a while? I need a vacation.

Me: Dude… Are you serious?

Mr. W: Well, sure! You seem suitable for the job!

Me: -gaping-…. O.O... TODAY IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!

Mr. W: No, it isn't.

Me: Huh? Why not?

Mr. W: 'CAUSE YOU'VE JUST BEEN PUNK'D!

Me: FO' REAL! DAAAAMN!

And therefore, I do not inherit/own the Kids Next Door

Now, the story-

**Chapter One: Rainy Day**

_It is common for Hoagie and I to participate in simple challenges throughout our friendship. Challenges, such as seeing who can eat the most pizza, or drink the most soda, and competing in activities such as videogames, etc. There is no harm done to either of us, maybe just a bloated stomach. It's nothing that I ever looked into, just a casual event of my day that I don't bother to remember. I do not bother to remember any of them, but one specific bet is not to be remembered- instead, it is a memory, if I make any sense to you. I think memories are something that you cannot forget, which are permanent documents filed into your brain, and to remember something means to take note of it, and whatever your trying to remember is able to fade away. And what you are reading is my memory of the specific bet disguised in the form of a story. A story complete with the essence of challenge, absurd events, and a short blond Aussie who is risking his sanity._

On this brisk, slightly windy morning, occurred a robbery, where the crime scene was the macaroni art museum. At this point, the five operatives have already resolved the issue, and now prepared to return the noodle-covered artifact. Unfortunately for Sector V of the Kids Next Door, the infrared lasers have been reactivated, leading them to another solution.

"Are you guys sure about this?" asked a short ten-year-old boy in an Australian accent. His layer of blond hair swept in different directions, being pushed by the breeze. He was secured in a harness strapped firmly across his chest and between his legs.

"Yes, Numbuh Four, we're sure," a hairless boy replied to him dully for the third time. He was British, apparent by his accent.

"But why do I have to do it?" the Aussie pressed on. The reason of his reluctance to complete the mission was because the harness caused him much discomfort…

"Because," the leader said, with a tone of annoyance in his voice, "you weigh the least."

"Going up!" announced a round young man, wearing a pilot's cap and goggles. He was sitting on a fragment of a bicycle, but it was only part of a complicated contraption that supported an extension cord… and the boy dangling from it. Next, Numbuh Four was shifted over a hole carved roughly in the museum roof, with the valuable piece or art tucked under his arm. His emerald eyes aimed down at surface of a pillar he was supposed to place the vase on.

Very, very slowly he was lowered down into the building. Red lasers beamed across the room, at the height of the vase's pillar. If even a crumb fell through one of those beams, the alarm would sound. Horizontally inching further and further, Numbuh Four soon came to a halt. He extracted the object from under his arm, with utter caution. Both hands gripped the vase's neck, and it made a quiet thud when it met its throne. He held out his arm and signaled a thumbs-up to his teammates, and the round, dark mouth of the vase looking up at him grew smaller and smaller as the boy was reeled up. Finally his feet touched the ground, and that pest of a harness was unbuckled.

"Nice job team. Mission accomplished," said Numbuh One. Then the group of five moved across the roof to their S.C.A.M.P.E.R. sitting in the distance. A drop of water, perhaps it was, fell onto the tip of the blond boy's nose, and he looked up at the un-colorful grey sky. Another few drops of rain pattered onto his face, and soon the rain progressed until he was soaked. The whole team was soaked. Rain pelted against the ground, and onto their heads, while thunder rumbled far away.

Soon Numbuh Four's hair was completely flat against his head, while his orange hoodie sagged down and gained weight just as did his jeans. The kids started to jog once the storm got stronger and thunder boomed louder. The aircraft door sided open and the passengers hastily boarded. The pilot, Numbuh Two, raised the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. into the air and then glided forward.

Wally gazed out the window, through the blur of water ushering down it. The sound of the forceful drops hitting the metal surface of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. was all that filled the inside of the ship. Everyone was dripping wet, and Numbuh Three, who was sitting in front of him, began ringing out her hair. Wally didn't mind being wet, and suggested to himself that maybe he'd frolic around in the rain when he returns to the tree house. His bangs hung over his eyes, and he looked through the separate pieces.

The ride continued in silence between the members, until they reached sight of their ridiculously large tree house. Hoagie parked the ship in one of the levels of the tree house, and everyone exited.

"Numbuh Five's gonna go change outta these clothes before she gets sick," said Numbuh Five, the team member with the most common sense. The leader, the flirt, and the pilot agreed, but the tough guy decided differently.

"Ha, well not me! I'm going outside!" grinned Numbuh Four. Followed by his comment were a flash of lightning and a startling boom of thunder, which didn't affect his choice.

"Man, you are one crazy kid," Numbuh Five sighed.

"Proud of it!" Wally said, and continued out the room, until someone grabbed his wrist.

"Numbuh Four!" whined the girl with an oversized green sweater, known by codename as Numbuh Three, "you're gonna get sick!"

"Whatever," Wally muttered, and continued to the door.

He dragged his feet across the wooden floors of this mansion of a tree house. His clothes were heavier than usual because of all the water set in them. By the time he reached the elevator, his clothes actually began to dry. They wouldn't be dry for long, though.

The elevator doors parted when he pushed a button, and he stepped inside. On the inside was a row of buttons, and he pressed the one with "Front Door" labeled next to it, and soon moved down. As he descended through the many, many, many floors of the tree house, he began to hum a song he was fond of. It was the tune of "Aliens Exist" from Blink 182. About time when the second verse ended in his head, the elevator doors opened once again, to a wooden stairway and a door at the end.

With no one in sight, he began to mumble the words. Not in a singing tone, just in his regular voice but following the melody. Wally continued down the stairs, reaching that door that would detect his presence and allow him outside in the pouring rain, which he could hear even in the narrow staircase. Soon he was running, and sloppily wiped his hand across some hi-tech panel installed next to the door way. It spoke his name, and then the wooden door opened for him.

And, in front of him, of course, was the motion and sounds of rain shooting down to the street and sidewalks and every other spot of the earth. Because it was November already, the wind wasn't warm, and actually would be classified as cold. That made the rain freezing when it hit him, and replenished his clothes with wetness. Once again, his hoodie sagged down and his jeans gained weight, and his hair was immediately soaked, overlapping his eyes flat, but he still managed to see.

Oh, what should he do first? Prance around in the puddles, or go home, get his bike, and zoom through the street to make the water part in two? Maybe he could just run in the middle of the street, or even get his skateboard! So many choices... Numbuh Four began walking away from the tree house, and in only a few steps tripped, flat on his face.

"What the crud?" he muttered, looking behind him to see that his foot was caught in a small ditch. He pushed himself to his feet, and looked at his torso. Mud was splattered across his clothes already. Though, when he looked at the ground in front of him, his eyes widened.

The biggest puddle he'd ever seen lay ahead. No, it was so big; you'd have to call it a pond instead. Before any second thoughts or the words that Numbuh Three said to him processed through his mind, he jumped into the chilly water. He pounced around in it, marched, and any other movement that you could label him crazy by. The pond was up to his knees, and that's rather high for someone of his measurement. Although he wasn't quite a good swimmer, the pond was okay with him as long as he could stand.

Too bad he was ignoring his sniffling, which would probably lead to a cold. But did a boy as brash and persistent as him take note of it? Of course not! Soon he tired of the puddle, and decided to get his bike. He stepped out of the water, and spotted out his house at the far, far, far end of the street. So, to make the trip more enjoyable, he ran into the street, and dragged his feet alongside the curb where a flow of water flooded into the sewers. Immediately, water filled his shoes and socks and when he walked it sloshed around in his sneakers.

Only thunder rolled around in the skies above him, no flashes of lightning. On the walk to his home, Wallabee didn't have much to think about. No missions, no exciting events (besides the winter holidays, but that was far off from now), no new releases of any video games or action figures, and of course he wasn't going to think about girls.

To him, girls were 'cruddy', although that was normal for a boy his age. But secretly, he wasn't sticking to his reputation. Of course, he had friends that were girls, which are not a problem. The problem was that there was a certain girl, which he wanted to be with more frequently. And whenever they were together, whether it is alone or in a group, he would feel warm, and flushed, and extremely cautious not to embarrass himself. And of course, he didn't want to feel that way. He thought this girl was really causing him to be all mushy and romantic, something he wasn't. And she wasn't even trying! It was just because of these feelings for her, he knew. What he didn't know, was what it was.

Moving along in silence and no one beside him or walking along the streets as well, he could soon see his house clearer. He decided to step out of the stream of rushing water and into the middle of the street, predicting that all of the cars would slow down enough in time for him to move.

Now he was stepping up the driveway, where a car was not parked. Wally knew his mom was taking Joey for a physical check-up and of course his dad was working. So, there was a key under the welcome mat for him to use, and he did. With a click, the doorknob twisted, and Numbuh Four pushed the door open.

"Home sweet home!" he said to himself, and entered the welcoming hallway. Since he was soaking wet, he left a trail of water along the carpet as he walked to the garage. As he passed the kitchen, he couldn't help but step backwards and maybe grab something to eat. After raiding the cabinet, he found a box of pop-tarts, and removed a package. Then he sat on the counter and split the pack open, and slipped one of the pastries out of the foil and kept the other in its package.

He popped the flat snack into his mouth and took a bite, and then proceeded to the garage. Once in the dark room, he flipped the light switch and stepped over unorganized sports equipment, until he reached a blue and silver chrome BMX Mongoose. No he didn't know how to do any tricks on it, but it still looked cool.

He twisted the garage door handle and slipped the house key in his pocket. Then, he lifted up the garage door and pushed it the rest of the way. A spider web fell on his head, and he brushed it off. Next, Wally lifted the bike and gripped the handle bar with one hand. Steering it outside, he flicked down the kickstand and returned to the garage to shift down the door, before he forgot. He positioned himself on his transportation. At last, he rolled down the driveway and into the street once again in the pouring rain.

Nothing about the weather had changed all day. It was gloomy, and cold and wet, but it was still fun. That didn't quite make sense to most people; then again Wallabee Beatles didn't make much sense in himself. You see, he can enjoy things even when they're like days such as these. He likes a girl despite the fact that he isn't fond of feminine things one bit. He sometimes used numbers to spell words, but that was because he isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box. And you'll soon see that he will do something, not for attention, or for no other reason that could be suggested, but he'll do it to remember that he did it.

Zipping through the neighborhood streets, with the taste of that pastry lingering behind in his mouth, was Numbuh Four still soaking wet. Where ever there was a pool of rain sitting on the ground, he would ride through every one, and make it part to each side as the bicycle wheels cut through it.

His activity was interrupted when someone shouted his name,

"Hey Wally!" He pulled his fingers around the brakes under his handle bars and put his foot down in a puddle. Looking around, he saw a girl with long black hair and an oversized green sweater standing in the rain with no one with her. Wally felt a shade of pink arise in his face, followed by warmth that heated the inside of his body while his soggy, heavy clothes were so cold against his skin. It equaled out, to him.

He hopped back on his bike and pumped his sloshing wet sneakers up and down on the pedals. He stopped when he was next to her. She stood on the curb while he was still in the street right next to it.

"Hey Kooks," he breathed, and looked at his friend. She smiled at him, which made his heart skip a beat or two.

He looked at her face, mostly her eyes. They've always been less like eyes and more like pools of violet to him. He suddenly looked away and buried his nose in his hands to release a sneeze. Numbuh Three glared down at him when he turned back to her, with an expression that said 'I told you so'.

"Look at you! I bet you caught a cold out here!" she accused. Then, she moved aside his bangs and placed her sleeve-covered hand across his forehead. Looking the other direction from his face, she then moved it across both his cheeks and to his neck. When she was finished inspecting him, she moved his bangs over his eyes again, in a cute taunting way.

"What made you come out here anyway, silly?" she giggled. It seemed that she wasn't quite worried after all. Kuki looked at him, and he looked up at her eyes, just observing how interesting they are. It seems they stick out to him, for an unknown reason, as if they are more than just eyes. He looks to them to see how she really feels, because sometimes her expressions are blank or deceiving.

"Hmm... I dunno its fun. Why did you come out here?" Wally asked. She looked aside, unlocking his eyes from hers.

"Lookin' for you…" she responded in a suspicious tone. "Oh, well, I'm not going to stop being in the rain just to come and play cruddy rainbow monkeys with you," he assumed that's why she came all the way in the rain, just to have her hair flattened and her sweater to be pressed down and darkened by the storm.

"No! It wasn't that! I'm trying to remember what Numbuh One told me…" he objected, and stared past Wally to think. A feeling of relief sunk into him, because he really disliked those Rainbow Monkey plush toys, if anything. "C'mon, Kuki, think! What, is it hard or somethin'?" he smirked.

"No, it isn't!" she batted his shoulder playfully. "Then just try to remember already," he said. He found it rather cute that she forgets things so easily, and that she's usually in her own world and such. But he shook those thoughts off immediately. Numbuh Four didn't want to notice these cute little traits about Kuki's attitude and personality. A guy like him really shouldn't have to worry about feeling this way, at least he thought.

Wallabee continued staring at her face, while she was trying to figure out the reason she came all the way out of the comfort of the team's tree house and to tell him.

"Now I remember!" she exclaimed, obviously delighted that she finally discovered what she had to say. "We're all going to the diner, so come on!" Kuki said.

Numbuh Four sneezed again, followed by an intense cough that left his throat sore.

"Oh…" Numbuh Three sighed disappointed. She once again felt Wally's forehead, concerned for him. Then, she moved her hand and rested it in the same places as the first time.

"'Oh?' What's that mean?" Wally asked.

"I think you caught a cold," she looked down disappointed. Then Wally, who'd, spent two, or maybe three hours in the chilly rain, just realized he had not been paying mind to his sore throat or sniffling.

"So? I can still go" he said impatiently. Kuki was probably correct because she was medical officer of Sector V.

"I don't think you should..." she said, still looking down. She really didn't want him to get even sicker than he already was, so that must mean that he couldn't attend the meal at the diner.

"C'mon, I'll be fine," he objected. She looked up, and at his eyes. Wally did what he automatically does whenever he catches those two pools of violet. He read that she was feeling concerned, which made him feel even warmer on the inside, if possible.

"No, Wally, I can't let you get sicker!" Numbuh Three argued. He understood, of course, but he didn't want to be left out and stuck at the tree house without his friends.

"I can take care of myself," he said in a tone that showed he didn't want to be pitied. "I don't want you getting any sicker, so I'm not letting you go," she folded her arms stubbornly.

"What? You can't tell me what to do!" he growled, his voice slightly rising, "you guys seriously can't just go somewhere and leave me behind!"

"Fine, then we won't go," she looked into his eyes sternly. "I don't want you guys to be stuck home with me! Just let me go with, and quit acting like my mum," Wally said sourly. Kuki looked up at him, seeming rather mad. Not in her she-devil mad way, though, luckily for him.

"Okay… just don't be too crazy and when you get home you have to rest on the couch or in your room," Numbuh Three finally eased up. Numbuh Four flashed a proud smile, glad that he won their small argument. Still, his throat was sore, and he had no hope of breathing through either of his nostrils, not to mention that his state affected his voice too.

She began to return to the tree house, which was definitely visible from their location because of its size. Numbuh Four followed slowly on his bike. The rain was still pouring just as heavily, and the sky was still colorless. They moved in silence, thunder still greeting them loudly now and then. And the raindrops still pelted against the surface of the ground, some falling and being collected into puddles.

Whenever Numbuh Four coughed or sneezed, it made his throat burn intensely, and Kuki would glance at him and pause. Soon they reached the wooden mansion and Numbuh Four threw his bike against the tree. Numbuh Three gave him a certain look, and he grinned stupidly.

They gained access to the tree house and entered it, then the elevator, where Wally began humming "What's My Age Again" at some point out of habit. Soon, they found the others grouped in the TV room.

"Hi everyone!" Numbuh Three exclaimed happily, as if she hadn't seen the three of her friends for years. She greets everyone that way each time she sees them, Numbuh Four had noticed. Both of them had cold drips of water falling from their faces, hair, and clothes and pattering softly on the floor.

Numbuh Four opened his mouth to greet his friends, as well, but sneezed instead, which made his throat burn.

"Numbuh Five knew you were gonna get yourself sick," Abby said, shaking her head slowly. The three were sitting on the couch.

"I'm not sick! I just sneezed..." Wally lied. "Okay, well, are we going or what? I'm starving!" Hoagie stated, patting his stomach and changing the subject.

"Wait, I gotta change into dry clothes!" Numbuh Three cried. The other four watched her scurry to her room, and then everyone's look set on Wally.

"What?" he asked, really not understanding why people always look at him in that way. He looked at each one of them.

"Nothing," said Numbuh Two, and he turned back to the TV screen as did Numbuh One. Abby still looked at him suspiciously.

"What is it?" he asked, growing a little impatient.

"Nothin'" she looked at the TV as well. Numbuh Four didn't sit down, because he knew Numbuh One wouldn't let him, for being soaking wet. So, he just stood there, with his teeth slightly chattering. He didn't change his clothes, which he thought would be a good idea for him. When he turned to go do so, Numbuh Three returned.

"Go," she muttered to him, and pointed out at the hallway that lead to everyone's rooms.

"Fine, I was gonna do it anyway…" he grunted in response, and walked to the opening and down the hallway.

It wasn't night time yet, only just past noon. A trip to the diner would be nice, of course, so the time didn't matter to Wally. He reached his room, first seeing his boxing ring that he used as a bed instead. Shutting the door behind himself, he walked over to the closet. First he pulled off his hoodie, and let it drop to the floor, and water formed around it. Letting the warm air in the heated tree house hit his bare chest felt good. Wondering just how cold his was, he put his hand against himself. His palm was slightly numb, but he could still feel that his skin was almost as cold as ice.

Then he removed his sneakers so he could hop out of his jeans which he tossed over his hoodie, next his socks and boxers. Then he put on another pair of boxers, and socks, trying to avoid the puddle of cold water around his pile of wet clothes. When he put another pair of jeans on, he noticed the difference between the weight of the wet pair. And the nice, dry orange hoodie was very comfortable and warm. He left the room, without disposing his wet clothes down the laundry chute. And that key in his right pocket was long forgotten.

Then, he returned to his friends in the TV room, where the four of them sat on the couch.

"Now can we go?" Numbuh Two whined, fed up with waiting. "Yes, we're going," Numbuh One hopped off the couch, as did the others who were sitting on the couch. The diner was their next destination.

* * *

The diner was so bright, that it could catch someone's eye from a mile away, on a day like that day. Neon signs were all around the windows and such, plus the extremely tall sign next to the parking lot was hard to miss, as it was framed with lights. And with all of the vivid lights compared to the gray sky, well, anyone could see how it stands out.

The five kids arrived at the diner, were there were a mix of people all ages. There were oblivious teenagers, adults that wouldn't shut up, and noisy kids who were enjoying themselves. On the way inside, Wally walked beside Numbuh Two, and they were in a conversation about the newest Yipper card being released.

"Yeah, well I heard that it has plus ten!" Hoagie said eagerly. There were many rumors flying around about this new card, but no one was quite sure which ones were true.

"Someone told me that they would only be limited addition," Numbuh Four added.

"Oh man, really?" Numbuh Two looked up, with a slight feeling of disappointment. "Well, I only heard it from someone so it probably isn't true," Numbuh Four told his friend, who lightened up at that. They continued identifying every last word that reached their ears about this card to each other. At some point they were seated in a booth. First Numbuh Five took a seat on the outside, Numbuh One slided in next to her, then Numbuh Two in the middle, Numbuh Four to his right so they could continue their conversation and Numbuh Three was on the edge across from Abby.

"No, and then he was like 'you wanna say that again--?'" Numbuh Four was interrupted from telling his friend some story. He looked up to see the waiter standing there and kindly looking down at him.

"Are you gonna order?" she asked in a voice that matched the look on her face.

"Uhh, yeah... I'll have a vanilla shake," he said, not quite thinking about it. She scribbled it on her notepad and took orders from the others.

"Is that really all you're gonna get?" Numbuh Two asked him, surprised at the basic order. Usually Numbuh Four would be a pig, but today he just didn't look into it.

"Well, yeah, I'm not all that hungry," Wally shrugged.

"Wow..." Numbuh One said in awe, looking at Wally just like the rest of his friends were.

"What?" he asked, always wondering why they only look at him that way. "You really are sick aren't you?" Numbuh Five said.

"Huh, no! I'm just not hungry!" he spoke with impatience. Numbuh Three looked away, and leaned her elbow on the table. She placed her head on her palm and once again entered her own little world, which no one could describe because it's only in her mind and no one else's.

"Whatever," Numbuh Four muttered after their looks of accusation grew. He buried his face in his hands and began suffering through a coughing spasm. Maybe he was a little sick…

"Numbuh Four, I think we should take you home," Numbuh One suggested.

Wally caught his breath, but was prevented from speaking because his throat burned harshly. "No, I'm fine! What about my milkshake!" he croaked, his voice becoming raspy and each words hurting him physically. Truthfully, he was more worried about being left out than not receiving that milkshake. Then again, the cold, creamy treat would most likely soothe his throat.

Nigel shrugged and continued scanning the menu, while Numbuh Five crossed her arms and leaned back on the seat. Soon the waitress returned with their meal. She placed a plate in front of each member, then Numbuh Four's milkshake.

"Are you sure that's all you want?" she asked Wally. He nodded in response, and she walked away to tend to another table. Suddenly, someone came over to the table, but Wally was busy watching Hoagie hound down his two chili cheese dogs and pile onion rings. Soon he started cheering the boy on, as if it were an eating contest. His cheering stopped when someone he didn't arrive with spoke.

"Hey," said a cool voice from Wally's right. He looked up to see some cool looking kid, with the cool shades and the pilot jacket. Numbuh Two recognized him immediately, and Numbuh Four couldn't really forget anyone who dared to flirt with Numbuh Three in front of him.

Hoagie swallowed and dropped his third onion ring. Numbuh Four continued glaring at the guest.

"Hey Ace!" Numbuh Three greeted merrily, in that excited way that she greets people who she knows. So what? He was just flirting with her. Why should Numbuh Four care? He doesn't need to be all jealous and care about nonsense like that. If that was true why was a sort of fleeting knife stabbing at him, and turning his expression into an angry one? Ace smirked at him, as if he was doing this on purpose. Numbuh Four looked into his shake, trying so hard to avoid the Kid. But he couldn't prevent himself from hearing their conversation.

Hoagie noticed Wally's jealousy, and decided to try and help him by making a conversation of their own to change the subject. And he wanted to save his friend from doing anything brash, like he always does, which is embarrassing.

"Anyway... you want one of these?" Hoagie muttered, letting out a belch that was utterly revolting. Everyone but Wally glared at him until he found his manners and said excuse me. He grinned.

Numbuh Four took another sip of his shake. It slipped down his throat leaving behind a trail of frost that did make his throat feel at least a little bit better.

"What you can't finish them?" he smirked, still paying attention to Kuki talking to Ace.

"No, and I bet you can't either," Hoagie challenged. Wally looked at the heap of onion rings on his friend's plate.

"Bet I can!" Wally argued. Hoagie grinned as Wally pushed away his milkshake and slided the onion rings in front of him. Inhaling deeply as if it was his final breath, Wally picked up one of the tennis ball sized onion rings, and stuffed it in his mouth. One down, lets say about ten more to go. He swallowed, and decided that the milkshake was better for his throat. Wally gave one last glance around the booth, and even Ace and Kuki stopped their conversation to watch him. The challenger laced his fingers, and flexed them out, and then took two more and chomped into half of both. As he was chewing the next few, he counted how many he had left, incorrectly, not to mention. Someone who knew how to count without letters could see that he now had eight left. It still looked like a lot more.

At some point his stomach began to not accept anymore food. He only had two more, and he looked sick by that time.

"Oh c'mon you have two left!" Hoagie encouraged him on. "Don't make him eat anymore, he'll throw up!" Numbuh One groaned, not all that fond of his two teammates' challenges. Numbuh Five didn't take it as the best entertainment either.

"He can totally do it!" Numbuh Two disagreed. Numbuh Four nodded slowly, and opened his mouth for another onion ring. He popped it in, and bit down, forcing himself to swallow. There was one more left. The entire time Numbuh Three was cheering for him and Ace was looking at him in disgust. Just when he glanced over at them, he noticed this, and it encouraged him to eat the very last onion ring.

Then, when the plate was empty, he felt it beginning to come back up. He shoved Numbuh Three out of the seat and darted over to the bathroom, covering his mouth with his hands. Then, he burst through the men's bathroom door, into a stall, and hovered over the toilet. Soon another person entered the bathroom after him. Actually, two people followed him.

"Numbuh Four are you alright?" came a British accent. Numbuh Four didn't reply because he was too busy having his meal force itself back up…

"Dude, I can't believe you did that!" Numbuh Two said from the other side of the stall. Wally was blocking them out, not because he disliked them, but because his head was beginning to spin. His hand found the handle and pulled it down, flushing his lunch. Soon his vision cleared, and he looked forward at the wall. He breathed heavily, and opened the stall door.

The two waiting for him sighed with relief. "I bet you'll never eat again," Numbuh Two sighed.

"I swear I won't eat for the rest of the week…" Wally moaned.

"Are you guys serious? First this, now you're going to starve yourself?" Numbuh One asked, feeling as though he was next to two morons.

Numbuh Four nodded, although he wasn't thinking. Right now he would reject a lifetime supply of butterscotch candy…

"I don't know, but if he doesn't eat for a week I won't," Numbuh Two said with a tone of respect. Wally popped back up, and startled Nigel and Hoagie, making them think he needed to throw-up again.

"I dare you," Wally said, and sneezed. So let's review his condition so far, shall we? First he obtains a cold, complete with a sore throat and a stuffed nose. Second, he eats a plate of eleven onion rings and he wasn't even hungry. Now he was going to skip his meals for an entire week?

"Really?" Hoagie asked. Well, he was quite round, and really did eat a lot. He wondered if he could resist eating for a week.

Wally nodded, again. Numbuh One shook his head, and looked at them.

"You guys are crazy," he blurted. "Proud of it!" Numbuh Four exclaimed, and Hoagie nodded in agreement. Nigel turned to walk out the door, but Hoagie had to ask him something.

"Wait…so you're our official witness?" he wondered aloud.

Nigel nodded, not really caring. Numbuh Two and Numbuh Four turned to each other.

"So, it's a deal? Neither of us can eat for a week?" Wally asked, just to be sure. Hoagie extended his hand.

"Deal," he grinned. And they shook on it.

Wally didn't think about what he just did. By now, you could understand that he doesn't think before he acts. This was a big mistake that he'd just made, but he was too blinded by accepting any challenge that comes to him to realize it.


	2. His Condition

Thanks if you read, and/or reviewed. Umm... Oh, and I accept flames. Yes, I will accept them no matter how intense. I completely understand if you wish to form an angry mob, prod me with your pitchforks and wish to set my fanfic to a blackened crisp.

I do not own the Kids Next Door. 

**Chapter Two: His Condition**

The door clicked when he shut it.

"'Ello?" his voice rang through the house. There was pitch black outside, and he'd stumbled on the walk home, and probably received a bruise. His throat still burned and his nose couldn't be put to its purpose of smelling. When the team arrived back to the tree house, he lay on the sofa, and Numbuh Three took his temperature. Despite that he had a high fever; she treated the entire situation as if he were one of her plushies…

"Son, you're home! Do you want dinner?" His mother called from the kitchen. So, Numbuh Four continued into the kitchen.

"No, I ate like twelve onion rings, you shoulda seen me!" Wallabee bragged to his mother.

"Twelve?" she asked, seeming a bit interested by her tone. "Why in the world did yeh eat twelve?" she turned around from finishing cleaning the dishes. She dried her hands in a towel and looked at her oldest son.

"Hoagie said I couldn't, but man I proved him wrong! Then I threw up…" he explained.

Mrs. Beatles gasped slightly.

"Are yeh alright?" she asked, because every good mother is concerned about her family.

"Umm...yeah!" Wally lied. This was a lie, because he felt dizzy and his cold was progressing into something worse. But, he'll tell his mom tomorrow, because it was going to be Monday and that would mean she would let him skip school…he hoped.

"Alright, dear, well I'm putting Joey in bed. And don't even think about falling asleep past your bed time" and with that she bent over to kiss her son on the cheek and continued upstairs. When she couldn't see him, he wiped his cheek off and continued to the empty family room. He hopped up on the couch, and turned on the television.

It felt good to lay down, especially with how weak he felt. It hurt with each word he spoke, and inhaling didn't feel very good. But, he had to breathe out of his mouth because he couldn't out of his nose. After being named the 'onion ring king', and throwing up all twelve, his head began to pound, at some moments harder and faster than others. But he still hadn't reviewed the fact that he couldn't eat for the rest of the week, because for the entire conversation where he made that bet, he couldn't see straight.

There was a blanket folded at his feet. He sat up, and clenched it between his fingers, then spread it out over him, and rested his head back down on the pillow. Feeling very warm and snuggly, he couldn't help but let his eyelids gradually drape over his eyes. Soon his mind drifted out of reality and his ears deafened to the television audio. At last, he was asleep before he could realize it.

"Wally, its time for school!" his mother's voice came. It pulled him from his dreaming and yanked him back into reality. His ears were soon able to hear.

"Wake up!" Mrs. Beatles called again, this time making sure her son heard her.

"I heard you the first time!" Wally shouted, his head spinning, throat burning, and his nose so stuffed that now his voice sounded odd. He turned around on his stomach and dug his head under his pillow.

His mother was now next to him, and shook him lightly. Of course he was still awake on the couch; he just was reluctant to step away from under the comfortable covers.

"Mum, I really don't feel good…" he confessed. "I think I caught a cold yesterday…" his words were muffled by the pillow over his head.

"Now how could you have gotten sick, my little marsupial?" she asked him, gently removing the pillow from her son's head to see his mop of scattered blonde hair that he's been tossing and turn on all night.

"Well, it was rainy and cold," he said, carefully trying not to tell her the truth: that he'd been outside in the rainstorm for two hours straight. He turned around on his back, but his face was a ghostly pale, and his eyes were slightly bloodshot with bags hanging under them. The skin on his face had also broken around his nostrils.

"Oh no! You're right, I'm taking your temperature," his mother decided, but remained calm. She placed her hand over his forehead, feeling just how warm it was. Then she disappeared and he heard her make her way up the stairs. As he waited, his back sinking into the sofa cushions with that cozy blanket still sharing his warmth, the doorbell rang. It echoed in his head and made his head pound extra, which made him a little grumpy for a moment.

Wally threw the blanket off of him.

"What?" he snapped when he swung the door open to see Numbuh Five and Numbuh Two.

Numbuh Two let out a quick gasp at his sickly friend's ghoul-like appearance.

"Are you going to school like that, man?" Numbuh Five asked, gaping at Wally.

"My mum's gonna take my temperature, but I probably won't go anyway" croaked the Aussie. His throat was dry and caused his voice to be very raspy, making it burn when he used his vocals.

"Well, you can drink water, okay buddy?" Numbuh Two sounded worried. He hoped that their bet wouldn't make Wally even sicker. Guilt would stab him so hard if the situation came to that.

Wally finally remembered. He was going to put himself under an even worse condition because of that stupid bet between two immature boys? No food for a week, though, he would definitely win. From knowing Hoagie, Wally knew that he eats more than a healthy amount. So of course he would crack first…right?

"Numbuh Five thinks the boy can drink whatever he wants!" she said, turning to Numbuh Two. Obviously, she didn't know about their bet.

The cold air hit Wally, whose clothes were wrinkled because he fell straight asleep in them when he came home. He crossed his arms against his chest and felt his nose running so he tried to sniff. That didn't work, so he wiped the snot on his sleeve. Numbuh Two remained silent, which seemed suspicious to Abby, while Numbuh Four watched the two.

"Then you ain't coming to school, Numbuh Four?" Abby finally asked him after glaring at Hoagie. Wally swayed his head slowly side to side, which made his temple pound again. He blinked to rid his dizziness.

"Then Numbuh Five'll be sure to tell Mrs. Thompson," she smiled, and the two turned to walk away. Numbuh Four slammed the front door shut and ran back to his warm, cozy sofa, hiding under the blankets again before they lost their heat. Joey was making noise in his play pen, so Wally pressed his palms against his ears to drown him out. The blanket was over his head, as well, until his mother removed it carefully.

"Here," she said, in between her fingers was the line of glass known as a thermometer. He took it from her, and placed it in his mouth. "Under your tongue," she reminded him. Her son obeyed, and tightened his lips around the object. For a moment she stared down at him, examining his pale face and his ruffled layer of hair that fell into his eyes, which were in the process of closing again. By instinct she already knew that Wally wasn't in the best of his conditions, but still had to have an accurate analysis.

"Okay, let go," her voice entered his blank mind, and made his eyes flickered open once again. He popped the thermometer out of his mouth and handed it to her. To get a good look, she turned on a lamp and held the fine numbers on it under its shade. After getting a read, she released a gasp, and Wally groaned, taking it as a bad sign.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice still as raspy.

"One hundred one," she sighed, and Numbuh Four groaned again. "Can I put on my pajamas?" he asked her.

"Of course," she said, still concentrating on the thermometer. Therefore, he swung his legs over the couch, and his feet didn't feel the carpet, for his socks were over them. Making his way up the stairs, a feeling of worry was within. Despite his knack for mishaps and trouble, this wasn't smart. It wasn't smart at all. Something terrible could happen to him if he's already un-well and won't eat. For example, his condition could be carried to worse points, such as him declining to pneumonia. Never before has he had that illness, but he heard that it was simply horrible from some other kids. One of those descriptions included that pneumonia could end your life. Since it wasn't from an expert doctor, Wally wasn't sure whether to believe it or not. But he knew that the process of been under it wasn't pleasant one bit.

But why must young Wallabee proceed in starving himself in the act of such a simple, inferior bet, instead of something meaningful? Well… Numbuh Four is very brash. The Tough Guy, if you understand. He believes it is his duty to hustle, push through, and come out on top despite the circumstances of whatever he must do; in this case prevent himself from eating for a week. Either Numbuh Two would tell about the bet, or it would spread around the school when someone asks why Hoagie skipped lunch, for he usually takes a large helping for himself. There was something that Wally couldn't unclear about Hoagie not eating for a _week_. The human hog, actually holding out on his name. It just didn't seem right, but Numbuh Two is very honest. He wouldn't lie and trick his friend, despite it would entertain him to win.

Another reason for Wally's unbelievable decision was that if he lost, he would be faced with a consequence. A long time ago he and Hoagie had sworn that among their bets and challenges, if accepted by both ends, the winner had the choice to inflict any consequence on the loser. They usually didn't set consequences for each other, because winning was enough for both of them. Though…this bet seemed too good to give up. And Wally just _knew_ that Hoagie had something big planned for him if he lost. So, to save his ass he decided to accept whatever condition he was going to be dwelling in, and just because he played in the rain and got himself sick, that wasn't going to be easy for him.

And to make matters worse, he had to hide this entire issue from his mother. She would talk him into eating, and then he would lose to Hoagie and have to face the music… If you were him, which means if you had the same limitations on your intelligence and thoughts, would you have done the same thing? Or would you give up every challenge you ever won against your best friend, and be titled as a loser who would be forced to do the stupidest and most daring thing that Hoagie could probably think up?

Too bad Wally isn't smart enough to ever simply think of backing out. No, that idea never came to him. Why, you ask? Well, because he's a moron. That's why.

Now that he was more comfortable in his orange feety pajamas, Numbuh Four drowsily walked down the stairs. He dragged his feet, which weren't bare because of the blue padding under them and orange material covering his legs, stomach, chest, and arms. A zipper was sewn into the center of the torso running up to his neck. His casual sleep-wear.

When he collapsed onto the sofa, his mother sat beside him.

"Tell me what hurts," she said, looking at her oldest son with Joey in her arms. He's quite a handful, just like his older brother. They also share the same haircut as their father, as it runs in the Beatles family.

"My throat, my head, my nose," he said, trying to make his list short because he would prefer not to speak.

"Okay, dear. Hold Joey," Mrs. Beatles commanded, and stood up to go fetch Wally's medicine.

Although he was weak, he could still manage a baby. Wally secured his arms around Joey's waist, as he trying to squirm out of the firm grip. Soon he tired, and rest still on Wally's lap, with his back against his brother's stomach. Wally isn't the kind of person who simply melts at the sight of an adorable baby or something. No, he's far from that.

Mrs. Beatles returned with her son's medicine. She returned the baby onto her own lap, and extended her arms to keep the liquid out of Joey's grasp. After pouring a certain measurement of it in a small plastic cup, she handed it to Wally.

"Just drink it," she assured him, observing her son's hesitation. Wally looked down at the red pool of medicine sitting in the cup between his fingers. Knowing how bad it tastes, he really wasn't willing to drink it. But he did anyway. He titled the plastic cup, and he contents washed across his tastes buds and in one gulp down his throat. He cringed at the displeasure.

"All right, I'll give you something for yeh head later," she spoke, and carried the baby into another room, leaving Wally to the couch. His pajamas were warm enough for him, so the blanket he was previously under lay rippled on the floor.

He was satisfied to rest his head back on the sofa's arm. A remote was in his palm, and the TV was turned down low enough for him not to gain another throb through his temple, but at the right volume for him to hear it. Although his eyes were on the television screen, he couldn't help but wonder what each of his friends were doing at that precise moment.

Numbuh Five was probably sitting in class with an empty desk beside hers. And Mrs. Thompson was probably blabbing on and on and on and on…He remembered when he thought Mrs. Thompson was the most wonderful teacher on the face of the Earth. But at the moment Abby explained to him that their teacher had the word 'Mrs.' in her name, his heart sunk so low, and he became rather upset. He's not sure why. By now he's recovered, but its too bad that he's not as motivated to do his homework, because he no longer cared whether Mrs. Thompson would be proud of him or not.

Of course, Numbuh Two wouldn't be paying attention in his class today. His stomach was probably growling furiously, by this point past breakfast, Wally guessed. Instead of concentrating on the teacher, he was probably making sketches for a new weapon or aircraft.

Wally wondered if his friend was really sticking to their deal or not. He is one of the most honest people Wally knew, and he never cheated before…Knowing Hoagie, if he had ever cheated unfairly, the pressure would start effecting him and he'd confess. It happened once or twice. But Hoagie has been known to by tricky, the clever boy he was. Hoagie was able to twist words around leaving Wally unknown to his plan. But if Wally had accepted whatever it was they were doing even if the words were deceiving, that would let Hoagie win fair and square. And this is why Wally's worried, incase Hoagie had tricked him. Since he couldn't quite confirm every word that was said during the visit to the diner yesterday, trying to remember came difficult.

The young man stopped wondering about the whereabouts of his friends and that absurd bet he made to absorb the television screen.

The time had flown by unknown to him, and his mother served him a bowl of soup. Once he saw food, the thought of the bet ripped into him. His mother returned into the kitchen, leaving him to polish the bowl off.

He picked up the bowl from the small table next to the couch. When he sat it on his lap, he could feel the warmth press against the surface of his pajamas. It would comfort his throat so perfectly…Besides, Hoagie wasn't there to see, was he? Wally looked down into the bowl, trying so hard to resist. His throat was simply shrieked for him to take a mouthful. That broth would soothe his throat so excellently. His conscience –yes, he had one—was speaking differently, though.

But if he did just throw his chances of winning down the drain, he knew he'd create havoc for himself. Not only would his pride be lost, but he would also hesitate to confess, since Hoagie wasn't there to see him lose for himself. For a while, he knew he'd bottle it up, and maybe ending up never telling. And that would just rip at him, wouldn't it?

He finally decided to set the bowl back down on the coffee table.

"Did you finish your soup, Wallabee?" his mother called from the kitchen. Oh no, his mom was expecting him to eat it! He hastily made up an excuse.

"It…err…tastes weird…." Numbuh Four replied, with a soft sigh of relief.

"It'll make you're throat feel better," she insisted. His conscience was now unavoidable, as it wouldn't let him do as his mother said.

"It tastes like crud, though!" Wally argued hoarsely. Then he remembered that Hoagie said that Wally was aloud to drink water, instead.

"Well, you need to have something!" she told him. Wally tried to think back on all the words Hoagie had said that consisted of an edible substance, and then he was stricken with a line he stated.

"Can I have some water?" Wally asked his mom.

"Are you sure that's all you want?" Mrs. Beatles asked him. She hoped her son wouldn't begin rejecting his meals because of his illness.

"Yeah,"

After that, she poured him some tap water in a cup and added some ice. She exchanged that for his bowl of soup and its untouched contents, and returned to the kitchen.

So, he sipped on his ice water for a while. All the thought about food began to make his stomach feel empty, but not yet growl.

And that's how he spent the day, resting and sipping water. Actually, it was pretty much all that Wally had strength for. He just hoped there wouldn't be any missions, because he just knew it would be a disaster for him.

The day continued as Wally spent it watching TV and ignoring the sounds from his stomach. How he never tired of action movies, sports channels, and animated programs, his mother didn't know. Every now and then, he'd change the position he was sitting in. Whenever Mrs. Beatles insisted he eat something, her boy would not accept, until she finally stopped bothering him. Since it was a weekday, Mr. Beatles was attending his job, and wouldn't return before the evening. He would call to check up on his wife, though. And that was all that consisted of Numbuh Four's day.

The day after, he still wasn't present at school. When Numbuh Two and Numbuh Five arrived at his doorstep, Hoagie's stomach was actually howling! Wally couldn't help but chuckle, although his stomach wasn't exactly silent either. And Numbuh Five already suspected that something was up with the two.

Again, Mrs. Beatles tried to make her son eat something, besides drinking water over and over. Wally found himself at the kitchen table with a bowl of macaroni and cheese set on the table right in front of him. The scent drifted into his nose so very temptingly, to the point where he had to sit on his hands so they would not lift that fork.

"You aren't moving until you eat at least a spoonful, Wallabee," his mother demanded strictly.

"But mum," Wally whined, "I don't _wanna_ eat!"

She glared down from beside him. There was a pause of silence that allowed him to try and make up an excuse. Nothing came to his mind. He returned her stare, folding his arms defiantly.

"Why don't you want to eat anything?" she finally asked, softening up a bit. Wally always ate if he was sick, she knew, even if it tasted unpleasant to him.

"I told you, it tastes like cruddy sewer water!"

After another pause of only glares, Mrs. Beatles let out a defeated sigh. Wally gave a smile, relieved to get away with another of his mother's attempts to get him to eat, and therefore costing him the bet.

"Crazy kangaroo…" she called him as he returned to his den.

Another day he skipped school. By that point, his tummy began gurgling so frequently that he could barely sleep. His throat and nose began to return to their normal states, and his headaches were no more. Then fateful Thursday approached.

"Time for school, Wally!" his mother greeted him in his bedroom. After giving him a gentle shake his eyes opened.

"I'm going today?" he groaned. He liked his lazy lifestyle. Then again, he did miss his friends.

"Whether you like it or not," she made her way out of the room. "And you're eating breakfast, too!"

Wally knew Hoagie had to have eaten something by now. The kid's a lean, mean, eating machine, for crying out loud!

He remained in his bed, because he hadn't fallen asleep until far past midnight. His stomach felt so empty, that spiders could probably produce cobwebs in there! It was also roaring so loudly, that whenever his mind would have faded away into dreamland, his stomach would sound, causing him to pry his eyes open and stare into the deep darkness of his room. Eventually, he decided that he couldn't gain anymore sleep even if he wanted to, and ripped the blankets aside.

Stepping over the objects coating the bedroom floor, Wally reached the closet and exchanged his pajamas for his common outfit. A backpack lay against the foot post of the bed, which he picked up and slung onto his shoulders. It was light because he hadn't used it since last Friday. Hurriedly, he exited his room and crossed the hall into the bathroom. There he brushed his teeth. When he was done, he trampled down the stairs, making a racket of course.

Numbuh Four met his mother in the kitchen, as well as Mr. Beatles.

"Hey, sport! You're finally betta, eh?" his father greeted him in an Australian accent deeper than Wally's.

"Yup,"

Mrs. Beatles gestured towards a plate sitting on the table, but Wally shook his head.

"Eat it!" his mother ushered crossly. His stomach once again produced sound.

"Err…. I'll take a pop-tart… instead," he muttered, and took one from the cabinet. His mother set her eyes on him, waiting for him to take at least a bite. Now that he wasn't sick, she was beginning to worry since he still seemed unwilling to eat. Mrs. Beatles just hoped that nothing was inflicting harm on him mentally.

Before she could repeat herself, fortunately for Wally the doorbell rang.

"That's my friends, bye mum!" Wally said over his shoulder, swiping his paper bag lunch as he sprinted to the door. The door swayed open, and Numbuh Four slammed it shut.

"What's the rush?" Numbuh Two asked him as he, Wally, and Abby proceeded to the bus stop.

"Uhh… I thought I'd be late," Numbuh Four replied in a tone that made his words sound more like a question. His eyes scanned for something to dispose his un-opened package of pop-tarts in. He just tossed it into the neighbor's trashcan.

"Why you skippin' breakfast?" Numbuh Five asked him. Soon she heard his stomach growl, and her eyes widened.

"Numbuh Five knows you ain't starvin' yourself!" she shouted, stricken with concern. Wally gave Hoagie a nervous look, but he nodded slowly. Therefore, both of them explained to Abby about the bet and how neither of them was eating.

"Boy, you're crazy! You really didn't eat anything while you were sick!" she yelled at him. A pang of guilt effected Wally, whose stomach was aching so much with hunger. In fact, both boys were literally famished. Now that Abby knew of the ridiculous challenge, Hoagie would silence on how much he needed to eat something, anything that he could live through digesting as long as he didn't have to be so hungry.

Numbuh Four just didn't understand how Hoagie couldn't have cracked yet. He did feel slightly bad for being so certain…And then he realized that sensitivity was trying to get under his skin, but he didn't let it. He also wished Hoagie would stop his blabber about food…

During the ride on the school bus, something odd happened to Wally. He was doing just fine; (except for the fact that he hasn't eaten for three entire days) talking to Numbuh Two about what he'd been doing during his time at home that week.

Then it happened. Right there, in the middle of a sentence, he stopped talking, and stared out in front of him. It seemed the gears in his brain froze all of a sudden. For a moment his mind just went blank. He couldn't hear the chattering among the students seated all around. The patched up bus seat that he was gazing into went unexpected by Wallabee. And nothing but gray appeared in his vision, but that was what he saw. Just gray, because he concentrated not on reality, but on that shade of gray on the television screen in his mind.

His senses snapped back into use once again, but he was still speechless to what the hell could have just happened. Numbuh Four was not daydreaming, nor did it seem anything like spacing out from his experiences. That never ever happened to him before, and it left him bewildered.

"Earth to Numbuh Four…?" Hoagie called, frantically waving a hand in front of Wally's face.

"Sorry…I err…just spaced out," he replied, knowing that wasn't true. But he didn't let it bother him, because Numbuh Four isn't a worry wart. In fact, he wasn't quite familiar with safety cautions in general. So, the boys continued their discussion all the way into the hallways of Gallagher Elementary school.

Some people acknowledged Wally's return, or waved a hand at him. Soon, he saw that oh-so familiar back of a green sweater and the long, black hair lying against it. Numbuh Three seemed to be talking to someone, and when he turned at an angle to see just who. The Kid, of course. But why should Wally care? Why should he be enraged at the thought that while Wally wasn't there, Ace had probably been with Kuki the entire time? Well, Wally really wasn't clear on that yet. But another thought reached him, one that cooled him down.

Numbuh Four walked up to her, and dabbed his fingers on her shoulder. Numbuh Three turned around, and when she realized who tapped her, Wally watched her face brighten up. The sight gave him an impulse of warmth for a second or two.

"Numbuh Four's back! Yay!" she cried with delight, pulling him into a hug. His heart pounded against his chest as he was near her, and he could just feel that rosy color in his cheek.

While Kuki couldn't see him, he smirked over at The Kid, who looked a bit shocked at the moment. Then you could see a sore expression upon his face when he saw Wally's look.

"You're all better now, right?" Numbuh Three asked eagerly after letting go of him. The people associating in the hallway drowned out the constant noise from Wally's stomach.

"Yeah," he answered, feeling awkward about lying to Numbuh Three. The truth was, he just wanted to collapse onto the floor. He felt weak, and honestly, would even eat a bucket of fried worms if it would consume his terrible hunger. You could just see it in his eyes that he was so vulnerable, and ached so much. But little oblivious Kuki Sanban couldn't tell, and instead was fooled by his words. Even his tone of voice gave away how Numbuh Four is such a bad liar…

Then a bell shrieked over the halls flooded with kids gossiping, chatting, and discussing other matters and such. It signaled for them to scurry off to class and sweep the hallways clean from their presence.

When Numbuh Four entered his class room, he seemed to be one of the last to arrive. Truthfully, every morning he was scarcely tardy. That just reflects how much he actually cares about sitting at a desk in nothing but boredom for an entire morning.

"Mr. Beatles, glad to see you back!" Mrs. Thompson said sweetly. Wally only grunted in response without even looking at the teacher and pulled out his seat. When he fell down onto it a feeling of satisfaction sunk into him. He leaned over and rested his head on his palm while a very dull glint set into his eyes.

All Numbuh Four could concentrate on was his stomach. In fact, all the way until lunch the entire class couldn't ignore Wally's stomach. The teacher even noticed. But Wally was too overwhelmed by the hole where his stomach used to be even to look up. He hugged his stomach with his arms and shut his eyes firmly.

Meanwhile, Abigail was seated next to the boy in quench for anything edible. She stared down at him instead of her text book along with the rest of Mrs. Thompson's students. Numbuh Five thought Wally may not be the most remote person she knew, maybe even the most daring of them all. But this was one of the worst conditions she's ever seen him in. Maybe even up there with that piano fiasco.

The time seemed to inch by far more slowly than it really did. The teacher kept speaking about the lesson, but no one heard her, as they were too distracted by Wallabee's stomach. He would usually be sleeping at this time, but he just couldn't. By now he'd adjusted to his condition, but the feeling still prevented him from slumber.

At last, the sweet sound of another bell interrupted the lesson. It blared through Wally's ear drums, echoing through his skull. Because it is a routine for him to be excited when lunch time comes, he immediately sprang onto his feet as the class was flooded through the door.

Before thinking he scrambled through the door as well and waited for Numbuh Five. When she came they walked beside each other in conversation. Wally felt people looking at him. He looked at each side of the hallways to see kids from his classroom staring at him with a mixture of suspicion, and concern. Numbuh Four shot looks back to each of them in return, thinking that they probably thought he was weird or something. After receiving his paper bag containing his lunch from his locker they continued to the lunch room.

The cafeteria was where everyone gathered to meet their friends. You had to shout over the other voices just to speak sometimes. But no one exactly paid mind to it.

Wally and Abby peered across the room teeming with people until they spotted Numbuh One next to Lizzie. When they moved closer, they could see that the couple was sharing a table with Numbuh Two and Numbuh Three.

Hoagie was in a similar position to Wally's when he was in the class room. He threw his paper bag lunch onto the table and opened it. Hoagie's head shot upward quickly with a bewildered expression on his face. Numbuh Four noticed the movement and looked at him.

"Oh…" Wally stood up with the bag tucked in his hand and slumped over to a trashcan. Looking down at the bag in desire, he tossed it into the trashcan's mouth and returned to the table.

When he came back, everyone but Numbuh Two was gawking at him. He sat down next to Numbuh Three so she was between the two boys who were now literally willing to jump off of the school roof as long as they were promised anything edible.

Numbuh Four stared down at the table, then up at his friends wondering if they were in a conversation or not. But there was only silence amongst them as they stared at Numbuh Four and Numbuh Two.

"What?" asked Wally.

"You just threw out your lunch…" Numbuh Three breathed in disbelief.

"Numbuh Four, are you alright?" Numbuh One asked in concern.

"No, he ain't right in the head, and neither is Numbuh Two," Abby replied to him. Lizzie, Nigel, and Kuki turned their stares to her for an explanation. Hoagie was too busy burying his head into his arms across the lunch table to look at her and Wally seemed to be spacing out.

But he wasn't. No, Wallabee Beatles was experiencing something far more different. Just like what had happened on the bus this same day but more intense. He couldn't hear Abby who was explaining the bet, nor could he see the looks of shock and disbelief in his friends' eyes. All he could do was see that gray screen in his mind, but still wasn't quite concentrating on it. He also wasn't thinking about anything, as if he was dead but his eyes were wide open and his organs were functioning.

When the feeling ended, he was left bewildered once again. What is this that keeps happening to him?

Lunch ended, and by this point the team and Lizzie had returned to their classrooms. Numbuh One scolded his two male teammates, saying that it was utterly ridiculous and that if a mission came they'd be beaten to a pulp. Numbuh Three was also furious because she was so worried. And all except for Hoagie and Wally were extremely astonished when they both agreed they still weren't giving up until the next Sunday approached. It was only for a week that Wally had to feel so completely miserable.

And now we find Wally sitting over his desk staring at the chalkboard. He felt far worse after being tempted at lunch. His mental state was now affecting his physical condition, or in other words actually smelling food made him _even_ hungrier.

Wally wondered what had happened to him at lunch and on the bus. He thought it was spacing out at first, but then the second time it happened made him think further.

Suddenly, he felt like he was just going to fall. Startled, he stood up as the teacher was reading something aloud to the class.

"Wallabee, could you please sit down?" Mrs. Thompson asked him. But Wally didn't answer. Instead he just stood there with his mouth slightly open. It seemed as though all of the life was drained from him; his face went pale; his eyes were widened and seemed to decrease in color; and his muscles were strained as he trembled.

A flash of pure white blinded his vision for a split second, and all in one motion he fell. Just fell. He fell not onto his hands or knees, but flat onto his back into a numb position.

Wallabee Beatles had just fainted.


	3. A Lesson In Losing

Sorry for all of these long-ass chapters. I did plan the story out though, and just incase you thinking I'm rushing, I'm not. There's gonna be more than ten chapters but less than twenty, I can assure you. I might change things around a bit, and I don't think I should give away the current number of chapters. Right, so here's Chapter Three. :gives you a muffin: Enjoy!

And, of course, thanks for reviewing! Rock on.

I do not own the Kids Next Door. 

**Chapter Three: A Lesson in Losing**

When he woke up the room was made of doubles and nothing would stay still. He didn't know where he was or what happened to him, but it seemed he had been resting in some form of hospitality. Blinking helped straighten out his vision until it sat still and silent. His eyes scanned the room for recognition. Aha! So he was in the school's nurse's office. Of course a trouble maker like Wallabee Beatles had been here before.

The bed was tucked into the back corner of the office. Also was a desk where the nurse sits and completes paper work at the front of the room to the left. On the right wall that the bed was against was a door and behind it is where the nurse does her physical exams. Wally sat up using much effort, and gained the nurse's attention. She sighed with relief at the sight, although his stomach sounded equivalent to a thunder storm.

"Oh, you're alright!" she said from across the room. Wally turned his head to see a woman staring at him.

"What the crud happened to me?" Wally asked firmly. He rubbed his fingers against his forehead.

"It seems you fainted, dear," the nurse told him, standing up and walking over to him. This is a new nurse, named Mrs. Winton. Ever since that entire situation with the former nurse using eye crust as crumb cake topping, a new woman was hired.

"F-fainted!" Wally said, baffled. If he had fainted, his mother would have been phoned. Then she would find out about the bet, and probably punish him, saying that was the wrong choice he made. But if he _actually _fainted… if it was really true… It was hard to believe.

"Yes, you fainted," she assured him.

"I… Hey! How do I know you're telling the truth?" Numbuh Four growled. Maybe he really did pass out… But he still wasn't going to believe that.

"You're mother is waiting in the office. Ask her if you don't believe me," Nurse Winton insisted. She still smiled, not in a deceiving manner, but in a kind one.

Numbuh Four stood up, and stared at the ground for a moment. Only if he fainted would he really eat. Wally probably didn't faint, although there really wasn't another explanation for how he ended up in the nurse's office for no reason. When he mustered up enough gut, he decided to walk through the door and face his mother, who would go berserk on him.

Dragging his feet through the school hallways, aligned with lockers and lights installed on the ceiling, he wondered.

"Yeah right, I really fainted…heh… and to think I almost believed 'er," Wally chuckled. Actually, it was quite possible for Wallabee Beatles to have passed out during his Social Studies lesson. When he zoned out, once on the bus and again during lunch, they were signs. They were his omens, which he ignored. But it wasn't exactly his fault—he just didn't know. Nor would he accept to believe out of his stubborn, impudent attitude. Because if Numbuh Four really did faint, he thought, that would mean he isn't strong enough. To make it simple, if the nurse was telling the truth, his self-esteem would drop, because fainting would make him seem so feeble.

His hand gripped the doorknob of the office door, whilst stomach was no more tied than his tongue. Wally would have to face his mom, who was always enraged when she had to be pulled out of her errands or something to see him in school. Numbuh Four did get into trouble with the school faculties constantly due to his violence and rude behavior.

Pushing through the door, Mrs. Beatles turned her head to see him and clasped a hand over her mouth. Wally arched his eye brow in confusion as she embraced him in a bear hug.

"Oh, thank heavens you're okay…." Mrs. Beatles breathed. Wally just stood there, thunder stricken, with his arms flopping around at his sides while his mother jerked him this way and that.

"Wait one cruddy minute!" Wally sneered, after pushing his mother away and putting everything together.

If, all on this fateful Thursday, he skipped his meals just like the previous three days, suffered a blank mind twice, woke up in the nurse's head quarters without knowledge of how he ended up there, and now finds that his mother is extremely relieved, then what the hell happened, already!

"Could someone please tell me what is going on!" Numbuh Four spat.

"Wallabee, you passed out! I knew you weren't eating for a reason! How could you be so stupid and put your health at risk like that! You had me so worried when the school called me and told me my little marsupial fainted!" Mrs. Beatles replied frantically.

"You know why I didn't eat?" Wally was stuck on that. His mother probably wasn't exactly happy with the bet.  
"Your little friends told me about that bet," she calmed down, and picked her purse up from the chair the she was formerly seated in.

Numbuh Four didn't know what to say. Should he gloat over how far he's gotten, or should he be sorry and plead for forgiveness, or should he ask where his friends are? There were many other suggestions that came to his mind, but his mother interrupted him from saying any of them.

"Let's go," Mrs. Beatles said, flashing a smile at the secretary, who, over time she'd become companions with.

"Go where?" Wally asked as they walked through the next pair of doors that took them outside.

"To get some food in that stomach. And you're gonna be grounded if you don't eat this time," she replied. Wally's jaw hung open.

"You're gonna ground me!" he asked, feeling that was unfair. But a mother must do what a mother must do. "I didn't do anything!" Wally fumed.

"If you don't eat, I'm going to punish you Wallabee, and that's that," Mrs. Beatles confirmed sternly.

"But mum! I'll lose and then I'll have to do something really stupid like eat vegetables or some crud that Hoagie thinks of! I'd do anything if I don't have to lose! Please don't make me, I'll do anything, I swear!" Numbuh Four begged, clutching his mother's arm and staring up at her with extreme honesty in his eyes.

"If Hoagie makes you do anything, just come to me and I'll straighten things out," Mrs. Beatles said.

Wally folded his arms in an annoyed, headstrong fashion. As if he would really retreat to his mother like a baby would! Someone with his attitude couldn't be so easy to break. Wally was going to stay true to his word! He was going to be a winner, just like he always was! He was going to shove it in everyone's face, everyone who thought that he'd give up only because he seemingly fainted. There was no way, no how his mother could persuade him into eating.

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Numbuh Four stared down at the burger sitting in front of him. His hands were under him again, as he turned his head away from the food as if it were toxic. Mrs. Beatles literally had to drag him into the fast food restaurant, receiving many stares from other customers.

"I can't believe you! Your stomach is rumbling, you fainted, and you still won't eat a crumb! You're being such a mule!" Mrs. Beatles snapped. She simply didn't understand her son's reasons.

"I'm not losing that bet, no matter what!" Wally shot, still looking away. His mother's facial expression rested into a smile. Finally, she caught on.

"Wally," she began kindly, "it isn't a bad thing to lose. But it is a bad thing to lose sorely, which is what you're doing,"

Numbuh Four looked up at his mother, still using a stern expression. Was she right? Is it true that he was being so persistent because he is a sore loser? Had he been one all along?

"Everyone's gonna shove it in my face," he pouted, not feeling very proud about sharing his feelings like a _girl_ would.

"Then you say, 'I did lose. But I lost fair and square, just how I should'," Mrs. Beatles replied. Wally thought for a second, and stared down at his burger. His mom was right! She was really, really right! If he knew that all along, it could have saved him from a lot of embarrassing situations. But, he didn't show that thought, even in body language.

But wait… what about Hoagie's consequence? What would Wally do if he had to eat vegetables forever, or swim despite he really didn't know how? What if he had to resign from the Kids Next Door, or be nice to The Kid for a day? What if he had to spend a day at the Rainbow Monkey theme park? What if he had to kiss a girl! No. No way. That wasn't going to happen, because Wally wasn't going to eat and he wasn't going to have any of those consequences.

"So?"

"Nope. Punish me for as long as you want, but I can't,"

"Why not?"

"Because I'll have to do something really crazy. I might even die!"

Mrs. Beatles chuckled. "Is Hoagie your best friend?"

"Umm…yeah, one of 'em," Wally's eye brow slanted again.

"Then I don't think he would make you die. Why would anyone want to kill their best friend?" She said, while Wally's mouth opened a bit. Again, she was right.

Numbuh Four never thought about that. He was too absorbed in how sure he was of winning to think outside the box a little bit. Hoagie probably wouldn't make him do anything that crazy. Hell, he probably wouldn't make him do anything at all! And even if Hoagie did, that didn't mean Wally _had_ to obey him. No one tells Wallabee Beatles what to do, anyway!

Wally smiled at his mom, and she smiled back. He picked up the burger, but hesitated in one more thought. Shrugging it away, he opened his mouth, and took a bite. Chewing slowly gave him second thoughts. There was still time! He didn't have to swallow yet! He didn't have to face a month of taunts and jokes and people titling him as a loser!

Although he just learned not to be bothered by failing at something, still he didn't want to face that. It wasn't enjoyable to have a weakness that could be exploited.

"You don't want anyone to tease you, do you?" Mrs. Beatles asked, as if reading his mind. He found it awkward that she knew how he felt. Wally's mouth was full of food which he hadn't yet swallowed. Only when he did would he have officially dropped out. He shook his head side to side.

"Don't be such a softy, now." she mocked. Wally didn't quite expect that and became offended.

Then he did it. He swallowed. He lost. That one bite of a cheeseburger was falling down his esophagus, and he couldn't help it. He couldn't do anything about it now, expect force it back up. Numbuh Four jumped, startled, at the precious, precious taste of food once again. His eyes widened in astonishment at what he'd done. Of course he wasn't going to adjust to his new life lesson, so he tried to shove his finger down his throat and make himself throw-up. Mrs. Beatles grabbed her son's arm and pulled it out of his mouth.

"Well, you already swallowed one bite. Might as well finish it!" she grinned.

"Hey, you did that on purpose!" Wally sneered, feeling slightly unintelligent at being tricked.

"Not entirely. Go on, eat it," she insisted, glad that she finally succeeded as a mother. Wally looked down at the floor, and figured since he already took one bite, and that his stomach was howling for more, he might as well finish a meal at last, so chomped into the burger once again. His mother watched as he wolfed it down in amusement. After the burger, he moved onto his large helping of french fries, and shoveled them into his mouth by handfuls. Washing it down with a soft drink, his stomach thanked him. Still, he wasn't content.

"Any more?"

"Afraid not, we outtah get going," Mrs. Beatles chortled. Wally looked at the ground, bothered. Next, on the drive home, he realized the bet wasn't pointless, after all. He actually gained something from it. And when his mother said for him to not be such a baby, well, she was on the money with that, too. Numbuh Four really was letting what others think get to him.

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After eating something, Wally was in a grand mood. Feeling very generous, and up-beat. It seemed as though nothing could bring him down, on fateful Thursday. Also, the second he saw Numbuh Two, he planned to tell him the news.

Once walking among the tree house floors, he entered the TV room. Numbuh Two was rolling around on the ground as if he were some type of rabid mammal, which was unusual for him. The other three of his friends were seated on the couch, occupied by the television. Wally approached them, while looking at Hoagie in a strange way.

"Err…are y' okay, mate?" Wally asked, from standing beside the couch. Everyone turned their heads up at him.

"Wallabee Beatles, are you nuts!" Numbuh Three shouted, hopping down from the couch to yell at him. As if to shield himself from her rage, Wally put his hands up.

"Um… no…."

Then she yelled at him for a few minutes, but he didn't know why. Numbuh Four stood there, cowering under that girl's rage while the others watched with blank expressions. Yes, they were concerned too, but maybe they should leave the scolding to Numbuh Three. It was fun to watch someone actually push Wally around, anyway.

You know, it's funny, really, how sometimes Kuki can just be the sweetest girl in the world, and sometimes she could be on the verge of ripping someone's head from their shoulders. In this case, her victim was Numbuh Four, who had been sinking lower and lower to the ground as his friend shouted loud enough for the entire universe to hear.

At one point, Wally began to chuckle as she exploded. Then his chuckles turned into giggles, and soon he was on the sofa laughing hysterically. There was nothing funny about Kuki being upset, but he was just laughing. Cracking up for no apparent reason, until tears were actually streaming down his face.

"Numbuh Four, why are you laughing?" Numbuh Three demanded. Wally couldn't catch his breath to reply, and the room stay in silence, as Numbuh Four's belly punctured up and down. Frustrated, Kuki left the room throwing her arms in the air and saying something about Wally losing it.

A few minutes later he caught his breath and sat up. Biting his lip helped him from snickering any more.

"It gets worse when you're married, man," Abby chortled.

"Shut up! I ain't marrying her!" Wally sneered. But Numbuh Two and Numbuh Five just laughed at him. Nigel turned his attention to the television. The three continued watching some animated show while Numbuh Three was in her room. Something about food came on during a commercial break.

Then Numbuh Four was reminded of losing. He slapped his forehead and looked aside, mumbling something under his breath. Despite the words of his mother, Wally still didn't want to be teased.

"I lose the bet" he groaned, his voice too quiet for the others to hear.

"What?" Numbuh Two called, putting a hand to his ear as if amplifying his hearing.

"I LOST THE BET!" he repeated fiercely. Numbuh Two gasped, dumbfounded at Numbuh Four's words. Not only because he gave in, but also because he was admitting it. Nigel and Abby exchanged glances and then looked at Numbuh Four again.

"A-are… you serious?" Numbuh Two asked simply flabbergasted.

"Yes, I am," Numbuh Four muttered through gritted teeth while clenching his hands. The teasing was soon to come.

"So I can eat now?" Hoagie asked, with eagerness overcoming his disbelief.

"Go ahead," Wally looked like he was ready to explode. Hoagie jumped to his feet and scrambled to the kitchen. Before he left the room, he halted.

"You're tricking me aren't you?"

"NO! JUST GO AND EAT!" Wally bellowed, angry of course. He didn't want to accept that he lost, although it was his fault and no one else's. Hoagie continued to the kitchen, ready to devour anything he could get his hands on.

"Numbuh Four, there has to be a reason you gave in," Nigel said once Hoagie left.

Wally sat in silence, trying to ignore Numbuh One and focus on the TV.

"So spill it, man," Abby added, leaning forward past the other side of Nigel to see Numbuh Four. But he only continued to watch TV, as if it were interesting. One of them made a hand gesture that Wally saw from the corner of his eye.

"Why do you guys need to know?" Wally asked grimly. Of course, if he really confessed to them how his mother actually persuaded him into eating, Wally wouldn't hear the end of it. Would you really like drowning in a year's worth of being made fun of to your dislike, but only suffering through it for, say, a month?

"I just want to know, because it's actually hard to believe," said Numbuh One. Numbuh Five nodded in agreement.

"I-I…" Numbuh Four paused to think. Fragments of a lie formed in his mind to make… an excuse! "The…. uhh...nurse… said I'd have to go to...err… s-summer school! Yeah! And summer school is a bunch of crud, so, I didn't want to… go…!" Numbuh Four declared, nodding rapidly to assist his poorly worded fib. Nigel narrowed his eyes at him no longer than Abby, until they returned their attention to the television.

Wally hopped off the couch, completely forgetting about Kuki. Instead, he couldn't help himself but think whether he was going to be given a consequence or not. He planned that if it wasn't too bad he'd do it, but if it was utterly unbearable he would find some way out if it.

Pushing through the door, he found Numbuh Two pushing a sandwich far too tall to swallow in one bite into his mouth. Wally took a seat next to him and folded his arms on the table. Most of the sandwich fell apart as it dropped from Hoagie's mouth into the plate set below him. Wally watched him stretch his jaw so he can chew, half in disgust and half astounded. Then he swallowed it, and choked on the big helping rolling down his throat. Numbuh Four chuckled, and smacked him in the back until he gave a satisfied look.

"Man, I can't believe you dropped out!" Hoagie said, re-stacking the contents of his sandwich. Wally groaned, laying his chin on his arm again. "Who got you to do it anyway?"

"The nurse…" he decided to use that as a cover up amongst those who knew of that stupid bet.

"Aww... Numbuh Four had to be a good boy and listen to the nursey wursey" Hoagie cooed mockingly.

"Shut up…" Numbuh Four grunted. This is exactly why Numbuh Four tries so hard to win all the time. You see, he didn't quite liked to be picked on, because, well, who does?

"C'mon Numbuh Four, I know that's not the real reason anyway. I heard you lie to Numbuh One in there," Hoagie said, taking another, smaller, bite of his super sandwich, without looking at Wally.

Numbuh Four's head shot up.

"It is to!"

"Is not"

"Is to!"

"Is not"

"Is to!"

"Is not"

"Is to"

"Is not"

"Is to"

"Is to"

"Is not!"

"Ha ha, I gotchya!" Hoagie chanted. Wally growled, seeming a little madder than he would usually be. That would explain why he sunk his fist into a few stories of Hoagie's super sandwich, and smashed it into Hoagie's face.

Feeling a little more gleeful as Hoagie shouted after him, with a coat of lettuce, lunch meat, and mayonnaise coating his face, Wally traveled across the tree house to his room. Once there, he snatched his back pack and climbed into his boxing ring. He worked through his stressful amount of make-up homework, that he was definitely not fretting over how long it would take to finish. Mrs. Thompson would probably allow him a few weeks or so to complete it all.

Then, as he was scribbling something on his Reading assignment, Numbuh Four remembered that it slipped his mind to ask Hoagie about his consequence! Oh well, he'd just ask him tomorrow. So he shrugged that away and proceeding, moving his hand across the paper in the motion of a typewriter, but far, far, far more slower. He had not a care in the world for the rest of the night. Wally did not dwell over the fact that Numbuh Three was yelling at him, that he had angered Hoagie with that last little move he pulled before leaving the kitchen, nor did he think of how him fainting would be on top of the school gossip for the next week.

Oh, but the Aussie didn't cleverly ponder any deeper, leaving him clueless of what's yet to come….


	4. It Was An Accident!

Hey, here's the fourth chapter. If you reviewed, you know you're spiffy, and if you didn't, that's cool too. And I apologize for taking a while on the update. A lot has been going on and I'm going to start sixth grade soon, too. So I'm going to be pretty busy, yet I'm going to finish the story.

I do not own the Kids Next Door. Hell, I don't own anything that doesn't have my name on it. So there.

Here you are, the fourth chapter of my very own fanfic thingy-ma-bob:

**Chapter Four: It Was an Accident! **

"Bye mum!" Wally called over his shoulder. A crisp slice of toast hung loosely from his mouth.

Ah… Friday. The day of the week where teenagers attend social events with one another. Adults tend to seem less strict, for it is only hours until that are away from their jobs and taken to relaxation, all any parent wants. Of course, all children are more than anxious at the thought of being trapped in that building called school wouldn't be visited! Most important of all, is that Friday signals the best part of every week—the weekend!

"Oh man! I had the best breakfast this morning!" Hoagie exclaimed. It could have been predicted that Hoagie was delighted with eating, once again. Then he shot one devious smirk over at Wally. "How was yours, Numbuh Four?" he grinned, with taunt in every word. Yes, it was only a minor mock, but still sampled any more teasing. Instead of answering the question, Wally stared at the ground passing by under his sneakers. He grinded his teeth together, mentally trying to calm himself from going berserk on anyone yet.

Those stupid bets are nothing but trouble! Last night, in the tree house, Wally thought about how in the world his mother could have persuaded him. The entire conversation sounded too peachy for him, even Numbuh Four knew that! After a while, he came up with a theory: That he was really abducted by aliens and they wiped everyone's brain, making them think that he fainted instead. In his mind, it was possible, only because that boy still wouldn't agree with the fact that he did faint, despite how many witnesses.

The actual reason was more believable.

By fainting, and carrying that hole where his stomach used to be amongst all of his other flesh and organs and other innards, Wally turned vulnerable. The completely unbearable feeling may have actually weighed stress on his mental nerves. So, his inner emotions decreased to a basic, lazy stage, therefore he wasn't capable of being the Tough Guy he's supposed to be. His dreadful conditions gave him a side-effect, one that was senseless and tender.

No worries, though. Now he was back. Numbuh Four's impatient, stubborn, tough, brash, rude, mischievous, acting-before-thinking attitude is here to stay. Henceforth, pretty much nothing about him had changed, although he actually considered that sore loser trait of his to be true. Then he smelled the scent of nachos and cheese drifting through every branch of the tree house, and his thoughts were silenced.

Once again, the teasing would slip under Wally's skin, and agitate him until the news of him losing the bet grew old between those who knew. But, until then, Wally couldn't regret losing that bet any more than the moment he realized it this morning. And to be honest, that regret was as deep as his hatred for every trip to a Rainbow Monkey theme park that Numbuh Three had gotten him into.

"Numbuh Five still don't get how you lost that thing, compared to Mr. I-ate-five-cartons-of-ice-cream-in-one-sitting over here," Abby said.

"Oh, yeah, I remember that! I still didn't puke, either," Hoagie bragged, as Wally didn't respond. He just kept walking, following his little plan to completely avoid any teases for as long as he could. Besides, only the team knew and Numbuh Three was too sweet, Numbuh One was rather cautious for if he teased Wally that whole deal with his butt could be triggered again, but Numbuh Five and Numbuh Two thought it amusing to see Wally red in anger. Of course, they'd tire of the same old thing, right?

Soon, the three reached that one corner where the bus squeaked and hissed in order to stop for them. They boarded and found their seats on the school bus, which strangely resembled the format of a train.

Wally noticed that which each row of seats he passed, he heard whispers all around. Whispers of, "It's Wally Beatles! Did you hear what happened to him?" or "All the kids in Mrs. Thompson's class are sayin' he fainted!" "Aww..I hope he's alright!" and such words. Numbuh Four looked exactly ahead of himself, definitely not making eye contact with anyone. He pretended not to listen. But his ears defiantly eavesdropped in on every word.

Then, he slouched into a seat and his eyes wondered around. A few whispers still lay askew in the atmosphere, otherwise all eyes were pointing in the same one direction. Everyone was gazing directly at Numbuh Four, as if he were some infamous mutant creature sitting between his two friends, acting casual.

Looking around, Wally wasn't clear of what could be going on.

"What?" the center of attention asked, with extreme irritation. As if Numbuh Four's voice were a call to act natural, all students on the bus retreated to common positions and began to discuss other subjects. Wally looked aside at both Hoagie and Abby, in search for an answer.

"Uhh… it's kind of all over school how you passed out," Numbuh Two piped, knowing what the Aussie's reaction was going to be.

"I did _not _faint, for the kah-jillionth time!" Wally screeched, attracting a few peoples' attention.

"Numbuh Five was right next to you, and she saw you pass out! Why you gotta be so stubborn?" said Abby.

"'Cause it ain't true!"

"It is too! She was you're witness!" Hoagie cried.

"Whatever…." Wally sighed, folding his arms and staring at the ground.

The bus ride continued, as the vehicle jerked up and down. Kids were talking all around, and there was never any silence on trips to school. Wally was excited, of course, because it would almost be Saturday! He planned to sleep most of the day, then go tire himself out at the park, and then watch some television program at the tree house. And on Sunday, he would wake up at noon, and maybe take a walk, but he didn't quite plan that out. Soon, the passengers reached Gallagher Elementary.

Once Numbuh Four stepped through the welcoming main entrance of the school, the chattering seemed to get a little quieter. Each hallway decreased into whispers again, similar to the bus. The morning didn't quite feel the same without the noise. One pair of emerald eyes shot side to side at all of the hushed voices.

Were they all really talking about him? It's no big deal, really. He only fainted from lack of food. Looking around hopelessly made Numbuh Four doubt this, though.

It took a while to reach his locker, the whispering still occurred, and Numbuh Four was becoming annoyed with being the center of attention. To hold himself back from doing something he'd regret even more, Wally just concentrated deeply on the books he was trying to tip out of his locker. No matter how hard he tried to prevent, the words kept swirling through his eardrums.

Once he got his books, he walked through the hallways beside Numbuh Five, since Numbuh Two had some business to attend to. At one point, they crossed paths with Numbuh Three.

"Hi guys!" she greeted merrily. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Watchin' Numbuh Four get all mad 'cause people won't shut up about him," Numbuh Five grinned. "What are you lookin' at?" Wally snapped at some by standers. They quickly turned to each other, still continuing to whisper. After a while the hallway got a bit louder, but not much.

"Why the crud are people whisperin' about me, anyway? I didn't do nothin'!" Numbuh Four snarled. Abby slapped her hand to her forehead, which was shadowed by the bill of her signature red hat.

"Numbuh Five keeps tryin' to tell you!" She groaned. Numbuh Four could be so unbearably hard win an argument with sometimes.

"And I keep tellin' you that I couldn't have fainted!" Numbuh Five gave him a look, certainly proving that she didn't want to go through this discussion for the twelfth time.

Suddenly, Abby perked up, and angled her face in looking down the hallway. "Numbuh Five'll be right back…"

Wally quickly looked in the same direction that Numbuh Five seemed to be looking in, interested by the curious expression on her face. Though, he saw nothing unusual. Maybe she was just spacing out, he thought.

"Aw…Bye Numbuh Five!" Numbuh Three exclaimed as her friend power-walked down the hall. Numbuh Four turned to Kuki.

"Guess what, guess what, guess what?" Numbuh Three squealed, bouncing up and down.

"Err…what?"

"There's going to be a sequel to the Rainbow Monkey movie!"

"Ugghh… I hate them stupid Rainbow Dorkies…" Wally groaned. Some girls nearby gasped, including Kuki, and were on the verge of forming a riot. Luckily, a bell shrieked, and before any of the girls could realize, Wally was scrambling to his class…

Once there, he felt reluctant to step in, and mentally suggested that maybe he could escape right then and wouldn't have to deal with any more stares from his class mates. They did, after all, see him 'pass out' yesterday, so it would be a very odd situation. His decision changed when he thought that those few girls who heard him insult Rainbow Monkeys could be prowling the hallways. In that case, Numbuh Four pulled the door in front of him open.

As he walked to his seat, he stared right at the ground, trying so deeply to avoid eye contact with anyone. In exchange, the students eyed him as if he were a new kid; silently, awkwardly, and slightly curiously.

"Wallabee, you gave us quite a scare yesterday," said Mrs. Thompson at the front of the room. Numbuh Four would rather not be referred to by his full first name, but let it slide. The silence in the classroom made him feel uncomfortable, especially because he could sense people gazing at him. Still, he didn't want to admit that he fainted because of all the things that one little action caused. It didn't look like Hoagie was planning to dub a consequence on him, though the teasing definitely wasn't delightful. Numbuh Four actually believed he had the bet in the bag, and now here he was dumb-founded on all of his stupid actions. Or, the main one in general, being that he ate.

Of course, it felt so divine to put food in that stomach of his again. But this morning when he inhaled his breakfast, Wally noticed an image of him taking that bite of his burger flashed into his mind. Every time he ate, he thought he would probably remember that frozen scene. One day it would all blow over, and maybe later he'll get a good laugh out of it. Unfortunately, that day didn't feel anywhere near soon.

Mrs. Thompson began her reading lesson, as Wally propped his elbow on his desk and rested his chin in his palm. Stupid bet…

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Numbuh Four traveled from the lunch line to the table where his friends were at. As usual, he plopped down beside Numbuh Three. Numbuh Two couldn't be seen though, which led to his friends, excluding Numbuh Five for some reason, wondering where he was.

"Where's Numbuh Two?" spoke the British accent of Numbuh One. Wally shrugged, more interested in the pizza on his lunch tray. Abby immediately turned her attention to her food, but seemed to be remaining calm. It looked as though she was hiding something, but the others were busy with peering through the crowds until they saw Hoagie.

"He's probably doing some after class work," Numbuh One suggested finally.

"Heh, suck up," Wally chuckled through his pizza. Kuki nudged him. "What?"

Seconds after, a deeply exhaling Numbuh Two came and collapsed on the bench beside Numbuh Five. There was no lunch tray with him, which seemed suspicious.

That kid really looked like he wasn't having the best of his days. Or he could have been over-drilled during his gym class. His flight goggles were tilted on the cap that sat on his head under them. His light blue button down shirt was buttoned crookedly and was dirty. A hole was in the knee of his brown pants, and Hoagie was panting like a dog outside on an August afternoon. Not to mention the various stains on all of his clothes.

"What happened, Numbuh Two?" Nigel asked.

"Don't…worry about…it…" he gasped between breaths.

"Where's your lunch?"

"I don't…have…any money…"

Wally scoffed, because he felt rather guilty for Numbuh Two, who had been really growing thinner because of the bet. Not eating was probably driving the boy mad. But now that the bet was done, over, and lost, why wasn't Hoagie so bent on not eating this afternoon? And why was he without a lunch, anyway?

"Poor Numbuh Two! Do you want anything from me? Did someone steal your money?" Kuki inquired. It was in her nature to worry about her friends, or anyone that didn't look quite fortunate.

"It's…a long story…but, no, I already…had lunch…"

Something very odd was going on with Hoagie's schedule today, as well.

"Numbuh Two, would you care to explain?" Nigel asked bluntly.

"Umm…" Now Hoagie's breathing pace was normal. "I was just, uhh… doing a few things for a friend," He explained, chuckling nervously.

"If you're sure," Numbuh One concluded. And the lunch period continued in average conversation, although Hoagie earned a few glances because of his shabby appearance and Wally's fainting fiasco wasn't going to die down in a day.

------------------------------------------------------

"What is the cruddy answer!" shrieked Numbuh Four, furiously rubbing his eraser on the paper of his math homework. He was lying on his stomach in the center of his boxing ring which made purpose as his bed. "I've been addiplying this for a buh-jillion hours!" His statement was only half true, because he'd only been trying to solve the math equation for about ten minutes, yet that felt like more to Numbuh Four. Finally, he gained an idea to go pry a few straight answers out of Numbuh Two. He was a genius, after all, how do you expect him to make 2 x 4 vehicles without any intelligence?

Wally snatched his math sheet and his pencil with barely any eraser left, and prepared to walk to Numbuh Two's room. On the way, he stared down at his math sheet. In his own handwriting were completely ridiculous answers. Instead of actually paying attention, Wally thought it clever to create his own solutions and methods. Yet, today he couldn't make any answers for this agitating number sentence.

Soon, Numbuh Four came across the location of Hoagie's room. Carelessly, he pushed the door open, to see the back of Numbuh Two, who was seated at his desk.

"Hey, Numbuh Two can you—"

'SNAP!'

Hoagie released a horrified gasp at such a sudden movement, interrupting the boy from his work on a new 2x4 technology blueprint. Could Wally just have committed his very worse fear?

Wally's head shot down to the floor, which was where the noise came from. Beneath his foot were crushed pieces of a model plane that belonged to Hoagie. Numbuh Two was in utter shock, for what he hoped wouldn't have happened actually did.

When Numbuh Four looked back up at his friend, he didn't quite understand why what he did was so appalling. You see, that plane was one of the newest models to be released at the local hobby shop. And Numbuh Two had been saving up for it with allowance that he'd obtained over the past three months. It's hard to imagine any kid preserving their earnings for so long, isn't it? That explains why Hoagie was so angry, and on the verge of wringing Numbuh Four's neck.

"What? It's just one of those plane-thingies you like. If it was just layin' around on the floor, couldn't have meant much. Anyway, can you help me wi--"

"Get…out…" Managed to say an infuriated Hoagie between teeth so fiercely clenched.

"What? Why? I didn't do anythin'!"

"Do you know how much that 'plane-thingy' cost?"

"No…"

"Well, then you should find out, because you're gonna buy me a new one!" Numbuh Two barked. Usually, Hoagie was a kind lad, but today was not one of his best, which added to his fury.

"I'm not givin' anyone any of my money!" Shouted a now provoked Numbuh Four.

"Yes you are! It took me, like, forever to save up that money!"

"How much could it have cost? Five bucks?"

"TRY SIXTY!"

"I buy shoes that cost more than that!" Wally lied.

"That's because you're stupid enough!"

"At least I know how to make a joke!"

"You know what Beatles? You can go catapult yourself through a field goal for all I care!" Hoagie shouted. Then a satisfied smile crept across his face.

Wally still glared at him with narrowed eyes, not catching onto Numbuh Two's thoughts.

"What are you so smug about?"

"Actually, you can catapult yourself through a field goal, can't you, Mr.-I-lost-the-bet?"

"What?" Wally's clenched fists which were raised in front of him fell limply to his side. "No way! What are you, nuts?"

"You sound like you're scared." Numbuh Two said with a grin.

"I ain't scared of anythin'!"

"Then _I dare you_ to do it at next week's football game!" Numbuh Two wasn't even sure why he was pushing his friend into doing such a thing. For entertainment, probably. Or to see if Wally really would.

Wally stood there, looking at the floorboards. That idea was insane! But what if he backed out? Could he back out? After coming this far, and making his reputation so strong, can he let it drop just like that? No. No, Wallabee Beatles couldn't do that. He'd done absurd dares before, and if he's still alive, this one wouldn't be any different.

"You're on!"

Wally, who was now blinded by determination and his knack for acting before thinking, shook hands with Numbuh Two.

Then he stomped towards the door, completely forgetting about his math homework. Now he was faced with another problem: soaring through a field goal. What if he missed and hit the field goal itself? What if he decided to back out at the last minute? Oh, the humiliation…

"How do I get myself into these messes?" Numbuh Four pouted.


	5. Friday Night

'Ello! Thankies for any reviews. I know the updates are getting pretty slow, but sixth grade is being more overwhelming than I thought it would be… Plus, I've been sleeping for four hours everyday when I get home. I'm sorry if I made any of you think I stopped or something… OMG I FINALLY OPENED MY LOCKER! OOOHHHMEEEHGAAAWSH! I AM SOOOOO HAPPY!

I'm too irresponsible to own the Kids Next Door. And I don't. I shouldn't either, because the show would suck if I did.

Proceed in your reading nn:

**Chapter Five: Friday Night**

That clock just kept ticking and tocking. It's interesting how the clock moves for you. If you're feeling excited, or extremely anxious, the clock slows down. It runs at such a gradual pace that every tick of the second feels longer and stretched out dramatically. Yes, eventually the time comes, but it depends on your emotion to say how much you need to wait.

Then you may be feeling extremely unwilling for the clock to roll on. In that case, as if it dislikes you, the clock will run faster and maybe even before you realize it, the time to accomplish whatever it is you must do arrives. But it's only in your head, after all. Maybe you can trick the clock! Make it think the other way around, see? No. That doesn't work, because the speed of the clock is only in your head, and you know the truth about what may be to come for you. Whether it's good or bad, the time always comes.

There sat Numbuh Four, watching the clock helplessly as it ticked on. Despite he was watching it, that clock, plastered on the wall of Mrs. Thompson's classroom above the chalk board, would not stop rotating. Around and around it went, how many times, he didn't count.

You see, exactly one week ago Wally was given the dare as a result of the bet he lost. And tonight was the night he must perform it, at the school foot ball game. The downside was that this dare was more like a stunt, and he was risking his neck, literally .What exactly was Numbuh Four sentenced to do, you ask? Fling himself through field goal, which isn't exactly the sharpest idea if you're trying to prevent a visit to the hospital. And Wally isn't that crazy, just daring, but he is a boy. Boys at that age will do very ridiculous things, for their own desired reasons.

To take his attention off of the time, he began to doodle on a sheet of paper. But, the clock was still ticking, and Numbuh Four had been watching it for so long that he memorized the tempo. Out of boredom and anxiety, he began scribbling the pencil point across his paper in a rapid state.

Throughout the week, his whole fainting catastrophe faded away into old news. This is a good fact, because Wally was ready to beat the stuffing out of the next person who was going to whisper about him. Even if it was a girl, and incase you didn't know, when your attending elementary school, for a boy to fight a girl was just vulgar.

Soon Wally was done scribbling nonsense on a quarter of the lined paper. Then the school bell began ringing over the teacher, who was reviewing that day's lesson. Mrs. Thompson's class flooded out of the room as if they were a pack of famished wolves that all caught a scent of fresh meat.

Numbuh Four, however, followed behind groggily. Not that he wanted to linger behind at school, which was one of his least favorite places to be at, but he wasn't very excited about his plans for later today. He walked down the hall until he reached his locker. At least people weren't staring at him and whispering like the beginning of the week.

He shoved his books into his back pack and followed the route to the building's entrance. No one accompanied Numbuh Four on his walk to the tree house. While he got his books he decided to try and think things through, since he only had three and a half hours to prepare his fortitude. A long, thick stick crossed his path, so he chose to pick it up, and began running it across the fences beside him as he kept walking.

Well, there were a few thoughts rushing through his brain. Wally wasn't the type to think outside the box; he wasn't the brightest star in the sky, if you will. But the Aussie did have at least a tint of common sense, or a conscience, right?

'_Stupid Numbuh Two… What's up with him anyway? He's bein' all snappy and crud… He probably wouldn't have made me do this in the first place if he wasn't in such a bad mood last week… Why do we even have these stupid bets anyway?_' Wally's inner voice said.

A rock tumbled ahead of him from the force of his sneaker pushing it. '_I would look like a wimp if I backed out... How do you think of catapulting yourself through a field goal anyway? I don't think I'll ever bet anythin' with another person ever again…_ '

That probably wasn't true, since Wally's temper usually did speak before anything else got a word in. He considered simply not going through with it, since it was extreme after all. An unusual stunt, some would say. Being catapulted through a field goal? What kind of nonsense was that? Not only was the idea of completing such a thing the _meaning_ of foolish, but the idea in general was rather odd. How did Hoagie come up with that? That boy and his imagination… well, that's probably what you get for having to create all of the crafty vehicles that Sector V uses to their fullest.  
Not to mention the way Hoagie was acting was very strange compared to his goofy, up-beat, humorous character. His poor appearance, negative attitude, lack of jokes (which his teammates find rather dull), and how he was being delayed by some mysterious event should mean he's up to something. What could that be? The others couldn't help but wonder, and whenever Numbuh Two was asked he'd always say 'nothing', which didn't silence their investigation, but only add to it.

Numbuh Four was still unsure on whether or not to execute this challenge. He'd done things such as these before, he was certain, but that was while attending his work as a Kids Next Door operative. If Wally were to perform the dare, it would not be something he could blame on actions committed during a mission. And it would be in front of an audience. Wally didn't know why, but he imagined that would make him rather nervous. What if he was injured because of a little consequence caused from a bet between two friends?

Numbuh One wouldn't be happy with that. When you're physically damaged, that means suspension from any missions until you heal. Numbuh Four was the team's hand-to-hand combat specialist, after all. Without him, victory for the others would take a bit more effort than usual. Overall, the leader of the team definitely wouldn't approve of Wally's reason, if he did get hurt, that is.

The stick Numbuh Four was gripping one end of eventually snapped. Then it was thrown to the sidewalk, to sit there on the ground until something else happens to it. Soon the tree house came into view, but it was still seen small since it was a far distance away from Wally.

'_What's the point of doing it anyway? I already made a dork of myself 'cause I lost in the first place. I'd probably just get Numbuh One seriously mad at me…and worse I won't be able to go on any missions! I won't be able to kick any adult butt… Still, it would be pretty cool… And Numbuh Two probably thinks I'm gonna back out! That jerk! He's the one who'd back out! Well, I'll prove him wrong! I'm doing it, and that's that! Nothing's changing my mind. Numbuh Two's in for a shock!_ '

And with that concluding thought, Numbuh Four quenched something to beat the stuffing out of.

---- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---

"Numbuh Three, there's no tea in this stupid cup!" Wally shouted, still mad at the fact he even let Numbuh Three drag him all the way to her room just to participate in a tea party. Being such a boy, he thought tea parties and other girly things were complete balderdash; didn't like them one bit. Instead, Numbuh Four would rather still be watching his super-duper action packed secret-agent movie. Just at the eruption of a full flamed explosion, Numbuh Three came and begged Wally to join her in an elegant tea party.

No, he did not wish to sit in a small chair, with that lacey-table cloth covering the table's surface and the expensive tea set organized in front of him. If so, why was he there now? How could Numbuh Three have convinced Numbuh Four, the team member most able to begin a quarrel with and easiest to pester, to do what he sincerely wished against? Well, Wally didn't know the answer to that. Not to mention how those extremely annoying butterflies that are always cramped in his stomach whenever she's around didn't ease the situation, nor did the confusion he always finds himself in around Kuki.

The tea party did not take the bet's aftermath off of Numbuh Four's mind, though. The fact was bouncing around his almost empty skull (his brain isn't taking up too much space…) non-stop.

"Of course there is, silly!" Kuki said, waving a hand which was covered by her green sleeves all the time.

"Then why don't I see it?"

"You have to imagine it!"

"Puh-leeze, when I imagine something in a little glass cup you can ship me off to the happy hotel." Wally scoffed.

"Hey! Tea parties are--" Kuki was interrupted by a faint beeping. Wally gulped. That was the alarm clock that was set when he arrived to the tree house. It meant the forewarning for his evening plans.

"I, err, gotta go. I'll see you later, Kooks," he said edgily, with his voice breaking.

"Okay! Bye Wally!" she called after Wally as he tore aside the curtains that Numbuh Three substitutes, or maybe uses, as a door.

Numbuh Four and Numbuh Two devised a plan for this whole event. Well, it was simple for Wally. All he had to do was show up at the elementary school football game. There, Wally will prepare by hiding himself beneath all different kinds of padding for protection. Then he would do the most gut- wrenching thing that he'd ever done outside of a mission. Is doing this really necessary? To Numbuh Four, it felt so.

---- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---

"Alright, got it," Numbuh Four assured, still completely nervous. His gut felt as though it was weaving tighter and tighter as each second passed. There was a lump in his throat that he kept swallowing past. And Wally's heart had to be ricocheting around in his rib cage right about now.

"Numbuh Four…you sure you wanna do this?" Hoagie asked, a little timidly. He wouldn't want Wally getting mad at him because all of this could just be a waste of time.

The two of them were crouching behind the tall metal bleachers. At half-time, the event would all come together. No, the school council nor anyone that had anything to do with the foot ball game had warning that Wally would be soaring through the field goal. Hoagie would have rather done it by surprise, incase he and Numbuh Four wouldn't be allowed to commit such insanity.

"Duh. Why would I come all this way for nothin'?" Wally answered automatically. If it weren't for the tension in that moment causing all of his emotions to become unorganized, he would have said something different. So, he mentally slapped himself for that. Then Hoagie dashed out of sight, or as fast as he could go, as it was part of the play. The sky was navy blue, but the field was highlighted by tall lamp posts around its perimeter.

Was Numbuh Four actually going to do this? He was leaning further and further towards yes. At last, he was present at the game, so since he's already here, there's no point in chickening out now.

After a few more minutes over-flowed with anxiety, a whistle blew. It signaled not only for half time, but also for Numbuh Four to hustle on the field. The audience watched as the short boy dashed out onto the grass. Over his head was a foot ball helmet, being neither team's colors. Then he wore shoulder pads, elbow pads, shin guards, knee pads, and cushions around his stomach. Somehow he was able to manage running with all of that gear.

Was he actually going to do this?

Wally's eyes scanned the field until he saw Numbuh Two, with the catapult already set up more than halfway towards the home field goal. The structure was just like those medieval ones, but instead of having the wood sanded down, the catapult was made by 2x4 planks. Once he got there, Numbuh Four halted. The audience watching pieced everything together and then came the shouting, in general the words '_What is that boy doing!_" were heard. That only made even Wally inwardly feel far more troubled, so he made sure that his body language said that he was definitely not worried about how bad he was.

Was he actually going to do this?

"Numbuh Four, this really is a bad idea" Hoagie reminded him as Numbuh Four hopped into the 2x4 constructed catapult.

"R-r-right…" replied Numbuh Four, who was obviously scared. Now the crowd was cheering for the Aussie, but he couldn't hear it. In fact, all that his senses provided to him was to have his eyes locked onto the field goal, which wasn't too far away. Probably just six or seven feet. This was just a junior high school football game, after all. Yet Wally didn't exactly notice that they were on the grounds of some cruddy teenagers. Luckily, they didn't attack.

Was he actually going to do this?

The field goal began swirling, and Numbuh Four's eyes grew wide. '_No….way…._' He said mentally, as he gawked upward like some sort of turkey. Hoagie, on the other hand, was feeling equally as nervous. Not in the same way, of course, but because if Wally got hurt it would be all Numbuh Two's fault in the first place.

Was he actually going to do this?

"Are you sure about this?" Numbuh Two asked again, the rope which he was to pull with all his might gripped in his hands.

"Just pull the stupid rope!" Numbuh Four growled. Wally could pose as a very good actor, because he definitely wasn't sure about this.

A strict, determined face came over the boy in the catapult, and then Hoagie came with the count down.

"F-five…" Numbuh Two began, as though it were he in the contraption instead, "four… th-th-three… two…" Wally could only hear the numbers, the crowd going insane not heard. Wait a minute—what's this? A sudden burst of bravery, perhaps? Suddenly, Wally's hands firmly gripped the brim of the immense bowl he was standing in. This time, there were no strings attached. What Numbuh Four was being cautious of was hitting the field goal itself, but with this attitude that has come over him, Wally believed he wasn't going to do that. He _was not_ going to hit the field goal; he was going to fly through it.

Was he actually going to do this?

"…One!"

And with that last word, a loud 'clunk' was heard as Wally was flung into midair! The catapult actually worked! Probably because of his weight. At once, he began to yell:

"YYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Tears were streaming from his eyes and the chilly air screamed past his ears, despite the hard helmet that was over them. His hands were glued to his sides and he began pointing downward, because of the laws of gravity. The scene rushed by Numbuh Four from behind the football helmet. Narrowly, his body missed the horizontal bar of the field goal, and then Wally looked down at the blue and red gymnastic mats for him to land on.

The motion halted all of a sudden, and a crack could be heard, not very a loud one, though. The crowd chorused into gasps. Everything happened so fast, that Numbuh Four couldn't process any thoughts for a split second. His head was spinning a bit, but he barely noticed. Then pain just flooded into his right arm, and when he felt it, he screeched, "HOLY CRUD!" After flinching, an odd noise began emerging from his throat, something between a sob and a yelp. Wally didn't even know he could make that noise, for it was only used when something really bad inflicted upon him.

Without moving an inch, he just lay there on his stomach in a crippled position against the mats, because all he could focus on was the physical pain. There was no blood, which didn't make sense to Wally. If he felt such an immense amount of agony, why was there no blood? How could something hurt so bad, hurt so much that even Wallabe Beatles had barely ever felt such displeasure in his entire life, but there not be one drop of blood?

No blood could be seen because Wally did not get a scrape, nothing pierced through any layers of his skin. Instead, he broke a bone, on the inside of him. Yes, the result of the dare was a broken bone. That weird sound of his was still droning through the air, until a siren blared in the distance.

Again, I'm really sorry for the flippin' long break. I've been caught up with school, and today I've been delayed on all of my homework to finish this for whoever reads it. OH YEAH! I'm sorry if this chapter is kind of suckish. I always read the chapters over, and this one seems kind of rushed. But don't worry, I'm still not done…


	6. Recovering

I'm back again, with the chapter six and everything… yay! So… here y' go. Oh, and I've been thinking about starting another fanfic… and the idea is like sooooooo cliché. I have my idea and characters, but I still need to give the storyline and events structure and my planning is still in progress. So, yeah. Just thought I'd inform you about that to get you all un-psyched and stuff. Yay. I wonder if I should do a Wally-journal-diary thing, too… I thought of a good opening chapter for that… I dunno. Tell meh what you think, peeps.

One last thing: I've noticed that the words in my chapters are decreasing, so this MIGHT be rather long. I'm not sure. I hope I'm not getting writer's block…. Well, if I do, someone needs to remind me to hug a MUFFIN. They cure everything. Uhh… yeah… here y' go.

_I do not own Codename: Kids Next Door. _

**Chapter Six: Recovering**

"Ugghh..." Wally groaned first thing in the morning. He looked down at his right arm, which was hidden by a heavy white cast from his elbow to his hand. It was blank and clean for now, but it made his arm feel rather suffocated. Rolling up his sleeve was also more comfortable, so he preferred to wear his hoodie that way. Since he just woke up, his orange feety pajamas were still on.

But he changed at once, because he'd rather go visit his friends than stay at home. Mrs. Beatles freaked out when she had to take Wally to the hospital. So being around his mother made him feel a little edgy, incase she wanted to go off on his sorry ass like that again. Usually, when Numbuh Four was scolded by his parents he didn't care and ignored it because it happened so frequently. And they're busy people, so they barely keep track of his whereabouts. But Mrs. Beatles was furious with Wally, mostly worried, but that only added to the fire.

Apparently, Numbuh Four was home alone, he could tell because he couldn't hear his baby brother crying or his mother speaking. Of course his dad wasn't home, because of all the work he had. Numbuh Four just left the house and walked down to the tree house.

Once there, he entered a room to find a casual scene. His teammates seated on the large couch, watching cartoons. They all turned around at once because of something happened outside the TV's audio.

"Oh my gosh! Numbuh Four, I'm so sorry! Oh man, I can't believe this, I seriously messed up. What happened when you left, are you alright? I seriously owe you; I'm such a loser… Could you every forgive me?" Hoagie blurted out first thing.

"Calm down, mate, I'm fine… I'm going to need a cast for the next few weeks… but… I guess I could forgive you." Wally said.

"Wait a minute!" Hoagie cried. "I have to give you something. Be right back," and with that, Numbuh Two scurried out of the room. It felt as though Wally's new injury was his entire fault, and was extremely glad that he forgave him.

"Numbuh Four," Numbuh One began immediately, before Numbuh Three could give a greeting of her own. His tone was strict and bold as a leader's should be. "As you already experienced, with a physical injury you are suspended from any missions until you heal. I'll contact moon base and report that to them, but please don't do anything else stupid, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever" said Numbuh Four, taking Nigel's previous seat between Abby and Kuki.

"What happened?" Kuki gasped.

"Numbuh Three, Numbuh Two was just in here and he wouldn't shut up about the whole thing!" Abby said before Wally could speak, slapping her forehead.

"I didn't hear anything about it… Oh, commercial's over!" Numbuh Three exclaimed, then turning her attention to the TV again.

Then, Hoagie burst through the door, panting heavily, with a slip of plastic in his hand. After Hoagie held it up between his index and middle finger, Wally recognized that object immediately. It was something so grand that it made him fall on the floor from the couch in awe. He stood up and gawked at it, not caring whether he was drooling or not.

"Th-tha…dude…… th-th-th…" Wally couldn't even speak! This was such a shock that he couldn't control his nerves.

"Yeah. Just…just take it!" Hoagie managed to say, curling his wrist on his forehead dramatically. Unexpectedly, Wally began laughing, and again was on the floor.

"…What?" Numbuh Two said. Now the girls were paying attention to the scene.

"You're kidding me! That thing cost like, infinity-plus-'L' dollar-coins! You can't be serious!" Numbuh Four shrieked, half with excitement, the rest disbelief.

"No, I'm serious. Take it as an apology…."

Before he could say another word or sob over the loss, Wally snatched it right out of Hoagie's grip. At first, just holding it gave Numbuh Four a little 'ZAP!', but maybe that was just his imagination.

There have been so many theories about this card that some people were almost ready to believe the card didn't even exist! Yes, a card. Not just any card, but one part of the Yipper trading card series! There were billions of them, it seemed, but this was the latest, the most powerful, and valuable enough for Wally even had to pinch himself to know he wasn't in a sweet, sweet dream.

And it's in his clutches all because of that dare. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to do after all. Oh, but there are many more wonderful things to come for Wallabee Beatles…

After a few more seconds of Wally gazing at the card and all of its stats and information, his head shot up and he stared right at Hoagie.

"Hoagie Pennywhistle Gilligan Junior,"" Wally slapped his hands down on Numbuh Two's shoulders and gripped them, "YOU ARE THE BEST FRIEND A TEN YEAR OLD BOY COULD EVER HAVE!"

Then Numbuh Four pranced out of the room, shouting with glee as if he were some giddy little school girl who was just asked to the dance by her crush. Incase you didn't know, that is a rare sight from Numbuh Four, who is commonly seen trudging around the tree house or with his chest held high like a fearless soldier.

All day Kuki had been accompanying Wally, acting as a nurse and doing things such as fix him meals, fluff his pillows if he were lying down, and fetch the television remote for him.

Now they were, in fact, sitting on a big, cushiony sofa facing the TV. Of course, cartoons were always entertaining, but Numbuh Three was distracted. Wally dared to glance out the corner of his eye to see what she was looking at. To his surprise, it was him. Then when he looked again, still keeping his head toward the television screen, he could see that she was specifically looking at the cast.

"What?" he snapped, turning his head.

"Can I sign your cast?"

Wally paused, and then figured that there was no reason to reject.

"Yeah, whatever. Just don't draw any cruddy flowehs on it or nothin'."

"Okay!" and with that, she went and fetched a marker. When she returned, she hopped up onto the couch, scooted closer to Numbuh Four, and began to sign her name. As she wrote, a line of rosy pink appeared in Numbuh Four's cheeks, just because she was next to him. Then came the oh-so familiar half-bewildered, half-in-thought look on his face. He still doesn't have the slightest clue why it happens, and if that didn't annoy him more than having his orange hood yanked over his head, he didn't know what was. It felt like he was incapable of ever finding out the cause of the stomach-plunging effect that he gets around Numbuh Three. And he was far too uneasy with asking anyone about it, so he just relied on learning by himself. Until he did unsolve the mystery, his feelings would be all bottled up inside the high-tech safety vault in the back of his mind.

"Done!" she said, snapping him from his trance. No, he wasn't thinking, because he was too confused to think, but instead was breathing in the scent of her hair. Yes…her hair. It had such a sublime aroma, that he actually felt as though he could have fainted right on the spot. It was kind of fruity, but really sweet, like the way sugar tasted, but Wally didn't guess that it was probably just her shampoo. Once he realized what in blaze's he was doing, he blinked and put on a grumpy face, crossing his arms and raising his shoulders. That was to cover up that he even _thought_ something smelled nice, which was way too unlike his character.

"I'm gonna go get a snack. Do you want anything?" Numbuh Three said.

"Yeah, could you get me some pizza?"

"Sure!" so she made her way to the kitchen. Wally didn't think it unusual that she was being especially nice to him just because he broke his arm; it wasn't like he minded having her attention.

Once Numbuh Three left, Wally lay on his left side, changed the channel to something involving sports, and immediately examined his cast. His heart leapt when he saw her name signed with a little heart dotting the 'i'. That was cute, and he wondered if she did that on purpose. Then, he realized what he was doing, thinking something was cute, and scoffed before turning to the TV.

Then came Monday. Oh, the dread that is Monday. Why is Monday the most disliked day of the week? Well, because it ends the weekend for school, which it just so happens that most kids don't enjoy this prison including that thing called "learning" and those other things called "teachers" and worst of all, "intelligence". Among them, is Numbuh Four, who had just taken his very first step off of the bus for the day.

"Cruddy school, with the cruddy books, and the cruddy pencils and—"

"HE'S HERE!"

"Huh?" Wally's head shot up to the following sound of stampeding children, growing louder and louder as they approached their target—him.

People were crowding around Wally in the same way they do when he's in a fist fight. They were all talking at once; the school newspaper reporters were there; the new principal assistant; kids were bugging him to sign his cast just as they do when cheering, "Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!" until the riot ends; the entire scene was noisy and full of commotion.

Now, when people talked about Numbuh Four as though he weren't there, it really bothered him. Itched him. Then, when people are complimenting him on how cool his Friday stunt was, it didn't annoy him. He enjoyed all of this attention as much as a bear does honey. It's just another thing about Wallabee Beatles…

By the time Wally actually got in the building, the bell rung, telling him that he was late. He didn't care for school, so he didn't rush to class. Instead, he looked at the cast, which was now crammed with signatures in all different colored ink. During his entrance to school, he also explained to the school news reporter why he catapulted himself through a field goal and how everyone's reactions were. He wondered how everyone found out about it, and ended up guessing that Not a bad event to start the day, he thought smugly.

Next, he made it to the classroom, where Mrs. Thompson scolded him for being late. Then, she stepped into the hall to talk to another of the school's administrators, expecting her class to behave with no one watching them. Of course, they all gathered around Numbuh Four's desk, all begging to sign his cast. All, that is, except Numbuh Five, who was watching with her red cap shielding her eyes and that slick smile.

Once lunch came around, even more people came by Wally to sign his cast. As the day progressed, he could tell that his confidence and self-esteem was inching higher and higher because of all the popularity. He also probably explained his story about what felt one-hundred times. Did it bother him? No. Quite the opposite, if it could be stressed any further.

Then, the end of the day finally came, and Numbuh Four was for once satisfied instead of overly-eager. By this point, Wally's cast was crammed with signatures.

Later that afternoon, Wally was laying on one of the couches in the tree house, in front of one of the TV screens, with one bag of potato chips sitting on his stomach, opened facing him, and his un-injured arm tucked behind his head.

Wrestling was on, much to his liking. He praised the screen for how cool he thought all of the guys completely beating the energy out of each other (especially when bashing the other with a metal fold-up chair) was. Numbuh Four wanted to be either that when he grew up, or a super hero. He'll decide when he grows up, he always says to himself.

Hours passed, and soon Wally fell asleep. Chips lay askew around him, and drool was trickling down his left cheek, the one facing the TV. His left arm was dangling off the couch's side, and his right arm was cradled to his chest. The whole room was dark, illuminated with blue, the source of light being the television screen which was still on the sports channel.

Suddenly, there was a thud that echoed inside of Wally's head, bringing him to wake up halfway. Again , the same noise was heard, almost pulling Numbuh Four from his sub-conscience. The third time the thud was heard, Wally's eyelids gradually parted, and the fourth noise woke him up completely.

"What was that?" he muttered to himself, his voice broken since, unknown, it was 2:36 in the morning. Tiredness still stung in those charming green eyes of his, even though he tried to rub it away. The thud came for a fifth time, seemingly louder and closer, or maybe just seeming that way because now Numbuh Four was awake.

By instinct, and being a member of the Kids Next Door, Wally accused the movements to be an intruder. In that case, he prepared himself for attack. Slowly, he tiptoed towards the door the go out into the hallway, managing to keep his cast from causing him trouble. Though, Numbuh Four already had upper body strength, the cast gave him no problem.

Slowly, he extended his left hand and put a firm grip on the doorknob, and hesitated to open it. He thought of a way to attack this trespasser immediately, and swung the door open. Before he knew it, Wally tackled the air and fell to the ground. For a second, he lay on his stomach confused, because the floor was shifting around under him. Was he dreaming?

Once he looked down, though, he discovered why the floor was also fuzzy and warm too. Under him were the sea of hamsters, which he rolled his eyes at the cuteness of them all.

"Ugghh… stupid cruddy hamsters waking me the crud up…" Wally groaned, as the hamsters scurried out from under him and encircled him instead.

"You guys better not be stealing my soda again" Wally's eyes narrowed as he scanned every adorable rodent from his kneeling position. One of them stepped foreword towards Numbuh Four, and presented a marker just as tall as the hamster itself. Wally scratched his head, then understood.

"Oh!" he chirped, brightening up, "you guys just wanna sign my cast!" At that, the hamsters all began squeaking at once, and the hamster with the marker signed the bottom of the cast in words of, "The Hamsters". Then, the all stampeded away, leaving Wally by himself. Even the hamsters knew about Wally's stunt!

Just as they left, the other four team members busted into the almost empty hallway.

"TEAM—BATTLE STA--…--tions?" Numbuh One began, then with his brow arching in confusion. "Numbuh Four, what was all the commotion?"

"The hamsters just wanted to sign my cast." Wally said, shrugging casually. Nigel scoffed. "False alarm…"

The rest of the team groaned as well, in complaining of how Numbuh One woke them up since he, just as Wally, thought there was an intruder in the tree house. The others trudged back down the hallways to their rooms, with Kuki bidding Wally a goodnight and him returning it.

Numbuh Four didn't realize that he had been previously sleeping on the couch instead of his room, and in clothes instead of his pajamas, but was too exhausted to go all the way across the tree house to his room and sleep properly. So, he returned to the room he came from, and continued eating chips and watching TV for another hour despite this was a school night.

Even the hamsters, who were his playful enemies, especially when stealing his stash of soda and candy, wanted to show Numbuh Four they didn't dislike him by signing his cast. Now he fell asleep thinking he was a pretty cool guy, what with all the attention. When you're Numbuh Four, attention is never a bad thing.

Yeah, that was all short. The next one will be as long as the first or second, and I promise it will definitely surpass the fourth. I just wanted to update quickly so you all didn't think I died. xDDD


	7. Fear

Hi there ). Now is the seventh chapter, and to accompany you is my friend, Jimmy (he's a waffle!). Don't mind him, he's just here for the free doughnuts…YAY DOUGHNUTS! ….ahem I'm okay. Oh yes, and I have a new favorite show. It's with those two English kids, Charlie and Lola, and it's on Disney's playhouse. It was very cool, and now my head is speaking in an English accent…. Yay. Anyway… I'm officially working on my new fic, though I haven't quite finished the prologue. I have to tweak it some.

Also, I did make this chapter long, but it didn't surpass the second chapter, which is what I was trying to make it so. Yet, it _was _longer than the third. So yay. I don't know why the length of the chapters matters, anyway…o-O

**_I do not own Codename: Kids Next Door_**.

Now, the seventh chapter:

**Fear**

For the rest of November, Wally wasn't allowed to go on any missions, one of his favorite things to do. Instead, whenever the alarm blared, he would become sulky and fold his arms in a sour fashion, knowing that despite whether he pleaded or not, Numbuh One would always refuse to let Wally go along. Then, the day came where Wally's now old, dirty cast would be removed. His arm was beginning to feel suffocated, anyway, but he did enjoy all of the attention for the first couple weeks. He even ended up in the school paper, which he took very egotistically. The others in Sector V were also relieved, although they didn't show it. Wally was starting to become a bit too absorbed in everyone's reaction, and they missed their fighter being able to do his job.

At the peak of December, Wally was riding in the backseat of the car. Since it was now cold out, he had to wear his blue windbreaker jacket that had fleece material inside. There was no conversation during the car ride with Wally's mother: not because they were upset with each other or anything, but just because there were no lectures to be given or any retorts to be shouted. For the ride, Numbuh Four watched the world blur by through the window, leaning his cheek in his palm, as usual.

He thought about how much he enjoyed being the center of attention. Usually, only a couple of crazy girls chased after him, and he was friends with anyone who played a sport. When he broke his arm, possibly the entire school knew him and thought he was cool. That let him walk around like he was famous, wearing a grin and saying 'hi' back to someone at least seven times in the hallways. For a while there, he had his popularity. Fancy that.

The car door shut, and Wally's vague attention sprang to his use. He found that he was the only person in the car, then scrambled to join his mother outside of the vehicle.

Both of them walked along the parking lot, then up five cement steps to an additional part of the hospital. Wally opened the door and entered before his mom, who checked him in at a desk. They both walked down a long hallway, and entered through one of the doors towards the end. The room was extremely bright, and looked like an average doctor's office. Numbuh Four hopped up on the plush bench with that wide strip of crinkly, glossy-looking paper laid across it, and waited.

Soon a doctor opened the door, turning the previously silent room into commotion.

"Mister Beatles, I believe it's time to get that cast off…" said Dr. Wateman, while scanning up and down the papers on his clip board. Then, he lifted what Wally thought looked like a miniature saw from the table against the bench where Wally was seated.

"Say goodbye" instructed the doctor jokingly. Wally watched as he flicked the saw and made the little blade vibrate violently. The blade came closer and closer to the rough outside of the cast as Numbuh Four watched in interest. When the mini-saw reached it, it began carving through the cast's shell, and all of the ink that had worn away over the while. When it was all off, there was the cotton layer left. The doctor used a small pair of sharp scissors to slice through it, and then Wally saw his arm. It wasn't exactly a nice sight, and only in a boy's opinion, as Wally's was, could be called "Cool." The scrawny arm of his was pruned and Dr. Wateman gestured Wally to the sink, and cleaned off all of the scarcely visible bacteria that had been collected on there.

"Okay, you're all done," the man said.

"That's it?" Wally was surprised because that only lasted for about five minutes.

"What, did you want me to cut your arm off too or something?" Dr. Wateman chuckled. Wally raised an eyebrow suspiciously, the trust for his doctor decreasing slightly, although it was just a joke. From being in the Kids Next Door organization, it could never be possible to fully trust any adult beside your parents.

Dr. Wateman returned to his clipboard papers, and Mrs. Beatles went to exit the room, Wally following. He looked back at the remains of his cast, and suddenly spotted one specific piece marked with a signature including a little heart dotting the 'i'. Quickly, he snatched it, and shoved it into his jean pocket, without anyone noticing.

POW!

The next thing you saw was a grown man, wearing some type of garb resembling the scales of a fish, fell to the ground. There were many more people lying near him, wearing the same fish suit, knocked out cold. Numbuh Four rubbed his fist in his palm by habit, with a satisfied smirk on his face. At sudden, someone gripped his shoulder. He turned around, flinging his fist as he did, his stomach tightened with alert. His punch crashed into someone's palm, and when he looked up, Numbuh Four saw it was Numbuh Five who came to him.

"Numbuh Four, we gotta go!" she said in a rush. She started out the door of the large room that was aligned with fishing net and towers of card board boxes along the walls. There was a ray of light shooting through a grimy window making the floating dust visible in the place next to the pier, otherwise it was dark and groggy.

See, there was someone trying to capture a treasure chest at the beach, or at least that's what Numbuh Four heard, so the team was trying to stop them.

Wally followed Numbuh Five out through the wide opening of the storage room, where the daylight shined and he could breathe clearly. The two rushed down the wooden board walk ground along all of the other piers, the other side being rippled water showing their reflection. Wally dare not look. He reacted like a cat to water, only five times worse. It just didn't work, because of that one day at his uncle's house back in Australia.

"_Oh, man!" whined six-year-old Wally, the boy with the blonde bowl-shaped haircut, wearing an orange T-shirt, jeans, and broken in white sneakers. He watched as his soccer ball floated gently across the pool water. Being as brave and fearless as he could be, Wally leaned over the edge of the in-ground pool on his knees. His arm reached out as far as it could, him inching closer just a bit, until suddenly, he slipped off! _

_SPLASH! Wally's cheeks puffed out, as he fell further and further in the deep water. His heart was leaping with panic, with him scared to death. Waving his arms around frantically, and kicking his legs barely got him further, while he could feel warm tears well up in his eyes although he was underwater. Wally never cried, unless he got severely hurt, which was only once. He thought he was going to die right there. Just as he was loosing air, his head starting to pound from the pressure of water, he felt something secure itself around his waist. His eye opened to see a blur, but Wally could see an arm around him, then he felt himself going up quickly. He could feel his heart beating rapidly, now because of lack of oxygen. Even though it was making Wally's emerald eyes burn, he kept one open to look up at the approaching light._

_Before he knew it, Wally's head was above the water. Immediately, he hacked up water, and whoever just saved his life set him on the pool's cement ledge. Once the person got up, Wally could see that it was his cousin Adam who dove under. _

_"Are you okay?" Adam asked, hopping up on the ledge as well. Adam was very nice, and protective of those he cared about. He had blonde hair, a bit more of a sandier color than Wally's and freckles on his cheeks. Wally nodded, but a few warm tears dripped down his face, hidden by all of the water he was drenched with._

_"I thought I was gonna die…" he croaked._

_"It's okay, I saved you. You'll be alright, just don't go into the water again until you learn to swim, okay?" Adam advised comfortingly, speaking in an Australian accent just like his younger cousin. Wally nodded again, and took one more glance at the pool as his cousin stood up and lead him back inside. Never again would Wally even dip a finger in any unit of water, he promised himself._

This is why Numbuh Four never wanted to learn to swim, and always became so stubborn over the subject. There really was something he was afraid of, and no way, no how, would he ever stop refusing. Soon, Numbuh Five stopped at the end of a dock. She looked prepared to jump in.

"Eh…Numbuh Five, where are we—AHH!" Before Wally could finish asking, something huge made a splash after reaching the surface of the ocean, then an inflatable object attached to the bottom of it kept it there. The splash was so big, it soaked Wally and Abby. Once Numbuh Four removed the water on his eyelids, he opened his eyes to see a vehicle bobbing in front of him, at the end of the dock. It was just about the shape and size of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R., but with different designs, and it was a teal blue color, except for the inflatable balloon keeping it afloat, which was orange. The door shifted open, and Numbuh Five stepped up into this vehicle. Yet, Numbuh Four stood behind, still on the dock.

Once he put two and two together, Wally discovered that this vehicle was a submarine, and on this mission, he would have to ride in it; underwater; With a chance of the windows cracking from the pressure of deep water, and then the entire thing flooding. Oh, Wally could just picture the terrifying scene of him loosing air and no one being able to make it to the surface of the water. At such a mental image, Wally stepped backward.

"We don't have time to stand there all day, Numbuh Four!" said Numbuh One. Wally slowly shook his head, terror written in his eyes. Then, next to Numbuh One, appeared someone else. And at first sight, Wally groaned, feeling now disappointed inside and out. There stood the girl with the spaghetti strainer on her head, and the metal shield fanning out, hiding her red hair.

"Uggh…don't tell me your scared!" Numbuh 86 scoffed in her Irish accent, disgusted. She wasn't very sensitive…or nice. Okay, she was the kind of girl who you usually cowered under. Tougher than most boys, it seems she doesn't have any more emotions besides anger and frustration. Yet, that would make sense, for you can't be too kind when you're Head of Decommissioning over at Moon base.

"M-me? Scared? Pfft..yeah-yeah right…" Numbuh Four tried his hardest to make himself sound brave. He could tell he failed by the death look Fanny was giving him, though Numbuh One looked a bit sympathetic for one of his best friends.

"Yeah, sure. Why don't you go ride your pony, scaredy-cat." Fanny said, waving a hand.

Wally was at once intimidated. His fists curled threateningly.

"Would you care to repeat that, sheila?" Numbuh Four snarled, burning with defensive anger that he was on toes to release on the Irish.

"Scard-ey-cat!" Eighty-Six spat.

"At least my hair isn't all crazy…_Fanny_," Wally enjoyed saying that last part. By this time, Wally and Numbuh 86 had their face about an inch apart, each giving the grimmest death-glare they could.

"Numbuh Four, Numbuh Eighty- Six, you're on the same team, so why don't—" Nigel tried to say in a calm voice, but Fanny turned to him at once.

"Pipe it, Brit-boy!" she screeched.

Numbuh One looked offended, and Fanny gestured toward him quickly, as if she were moving in to hurt him.

"Yes s-sir…" Nigel said, scrunching down and slinking away. Poor behavior for a leader, eh?

"You can't talk to Numbuh One like that!" said Numbuh Four hotly.

"Looks like I broke that rule, shorty!" Fanny now turned to him.

"I'm about to break another one if you don't back off, girlie!" Wally threatened, now scarlet with rage. Not good.

"What do you think you could do to me?"

"A lot, it you don't shut up!"

"I'd like to see that…" she scoffed, sarcastically.

"You don't have to wait much longer!" said Wally threw gritting teeth. Then he gripped Fanny's shoulder's and they began a little fight. This was startling, because boys wouldn't hit girls. When someone mentioned this, Wally shot, "Yeah, she looks enough like one…can you tell the difference?" while struggling with her. Numbuh One stepped up again.

"YOU TWO! STOP THIS INSTANT!" he shouted over the action. Now Numbuh Five was behind him. "Y'all need to stop" said Abby. Numbuh Eighty-Six shoved Wally away from her when they were standing…

Suddenly, Numbuh Four slipped and couldn't quite comprehend the difference between the sky and the wooden dock. Then he heard a big 'SPLASH!'

But…it was above him. He could not breathe, and couldn't really hear. He'd felt this way before, and recognized it at once. Frantically throwing his arms and legs, this time he wasn't being stupid and being where he could stand. Wally was really, really drowning. And he sunk lower, loosing air, his face becoming purple, scared to death.

'_I won't die, I won't die, I won't die….What if I never tell—_'

On the dock, above him, Numbuh Three was panicking, opposed to everyone else. "He doesn't know how to swim, you guys!" she shrieked. The others looked slightly similar to her, especially Fanny.

"What about when he swam to the Nega-world?" Numbuh One suggested, hoping he was right.

"Why are we standing around? The boy is probably unconscious by now! Numbuh Five's goin' in!" she said hastily. And with that, she dived into the water.

Further and further Abby swam, until she could see orange among the blur of water. She propelled forward, able to hear her heart beating, hoping her friend was okay. Numbuh Five reaching out her arm, and grabbed a cushiony material, then swam upward, hustling. A life could be on the stake, this was no joke. When she burst through the surface of the water, she found Kuki and the others leaning over the edge of the dock in worry. Once Abby hopped on the dock, she quickly dragged Wally up there as well.

"Is he breathing, is he, is he?" Numbuh Three asked immediately, and Abby checked Numbuh Four's pulse by placing two fingers at a certain

spot on his neck.

"He needs mouth-to-mouth!" she said, and looked back up and Numbuh Three. They were on either side of him.

"You're the medical operative!" Hoagie yelped to Numbuh Three.

"Me? Me do it? I mean, I might not do it right, and he might--"

Though, before she could finish spazzing, Numbuh Five shoved her head down to his, and Numbuh Three did mouth-to-mouth. Why would she even hesitate? Well, it was Numbuh Three, and her naïve ways.

She parted from Wally, listened to his heart beat, and then pressed down hard on his stomach, counted to three, and did this all over again while pinching his nose. The reason Numbuh Three suddenly became serious was because she finally realized that Wally had a chance of not making it. Numbuh Three didn't want to think any further than that…

It was hard for her to hide the blush, but she managed the grin. Would this count as kissing a boy? Sure felt so. What would her friends say? What would Wally say when he hears all of this when he wakes up? Apparently, Numbuh Three isn't very good at holding her train of strictness.

Suddenly, Wally twitched , but Kuki was too lost in thought to notice. She bent down to put her lips to his again, and didn't notice his eyes were slowly opening.

At first, Wally didn't notice what the hell was going on. All he knew was his stomach was tangled worse than a pumpkin patch, and he felt like he was floating. Yet, he could feel the air hitting him. There was something pressing against his lips, and he noticed it felt soft, whatever it may be. It also felt like he was swallowing air, or something like that.

Finally, Wally's eyes opened all the way up, and he could see the back of Numbuh Three's head and some of her hair tickling his nose. Utterly astonished, Wally pushed her off of him, and gasped for breath. She looked down at him, mouth hanging open a little, because she was so surprised. Did she just save her friend, no, one of her best friend's lives?

"Were you just kissing me?" Numbuh Four coughed, as every operative there besides himself let out the most relieved sigh.

"I-I…" Truthfully, Numbuh Three really wasn't sure of that question, herself. She looked up at Numbuh Five for some help in the situation. Abby was starring back at her, and got rid of the smirk on her face.

"No, its call Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation," Numbuh Five answered him, and Kuki looked pretty relieved. Wally cast a suspicious look at Kuki, whose eyebrows were raised, eyes kind of widened.

"Eww…you kissed me!" he shrieked. It was hard to tell whether he was faking the disgust or not.

"I was not! I just saved your life!" Kuki said.

"Ew, ew, ew, ew, ew!" Wally piped, wiping his mouth off.

"Do you really have to do that?" Kuki asked.

Wally looked up at his resource, her eyes. Right at them.

And to his surprise, if it could be taken any higher, they looked…hurt. Was she hurt that he was acting disgusted over her saving his life? Or maybe she thought he didn't like her kissing him. Wally thought about this for a bit, not noticing how he was looking at her. Just blankly, not disgusted anymore.

The others, especially Numbuh Three, were surprised to hear Wally mutter, "…Sorry."

The communicator in Numbuh One's pocket crackled to life, breaking the silence. Wally took a last second to look Kuki straight in the eye, then looked else-where.

Once Nigel returned the communicator, he said, "May we now continue the mission, without any more fights?" he glared at Wally and Fanny. Why was she with them anyway? Wally just wasn't paying attention when Numbuh One announced this, most likely.

When Wally was ready to enter the submarine, he stopped again. The thought of drowning twice in one day was just too much for Numbuh Four. Nigel looked behind understandingly.

"I guess…" he sighed, "You could skip the mission, Numbuh Four."

"Right."

'_Heh heh…. She kissed me…_'

Wally still felt all twisted and tangled over that.

Wally was still at the tree house before anyone else came, of course. Once he heard someone enter the room from behind the couch, he didn't turn around. For the past half an hour, he was half asleep.

"Hi Numbuh Four!" the voice greeted from behind Wally. His stomach wrung itself again even at the voice now. Well, he did kiss the girl. Or, the girl kissed him. Or, she gave him the mouth-to-mouth 'insert big confusing word here' thing. Secretly, (Wally wouldn't even be caught dead saying this, or showing any way that he felt it) deep down, really, really, _really_ deep down, Numbuh Four wanted to classify this as his first kiss. He imagined with any other girl he knew, Wally would still be disgusted. But, Numbuh Three was never only any other girl he knew, now was she? Well, secrets are secrets. And he thought he was hiding his very most top-secretest secret of all very well. This secret surpasses any other, and he'd rather swim before confessing it, although he almost has a few times. But, those were the times where a ten-year-old boy could think it was the end for him, or for any use for this secret. Though, rather having to swim than ever mention one word of Numbuh Four's deepest, darkest, lowest, most astonishing (to very little people who have already taken clue; only Wally believed he was doing a good job of covering it up) was saying a lot. But for the memory's next event, a lot is to be said.

Numbuh Four pretended to be asleep, although he already knew Kuki would just wake him up anyway.

"Are you sleeping? You barely did anything!" Numbuh Three prodded a finger into Numbuh Four's arm.

"No, I was pretending so you'd go away." Wally said flatly, sitting up lively. With his expression matching his tone of voice, Kuki couldn't tell how Wally was joking. She looked a little upset again, with Wally having to catch himself before thinking it was cute. And here, ladies and gentlemen, we learn what could be the result of a kiss…err—mouth-to-mouth situation. That too. "I was kidding!" Numbuh Four added quickly. Kuki turned her head straight, because it began to tilt in confusion.

"Oh, okay!"

Wally noticed how awkward it felt just to be around Numbuh Three. It never really felt too uncomfortable. Numbuh Four wondered if she felt the same way…

"Right, well, I came to check up on you and see if you were okay" said Kuki.

"Okay?" Wally seemed a little offended. He didn't like other people worrying about him; it made him feel like he wasn't being tough enough.

"Yup. You drowned, remember?"

It was still awkward in the atmosphere. So awkward, that Wally was almost tempted to make an excuse for leaving the room including that pretty face of hers.

"Sure. Yeah, I'm alright…"

"Are you absolutely positive? Are you sure your breathing alright?" now she sounded like a concerned mother. "Let me check…" she put her ear against his chest.

"Kooks, I'm fine…" said Wally, a little annoyed, shoved her off of him. Then, Numbuh Three looked at him thoughtfully.

"Were you scared?" she asked, just as Wally was going to continue in his viewing of the TV.

"Huh?"

"Were you scared of drowning?" Numbuh Three repeated. Wally shifted in his place, and remained silent. "Well…like…" he looked back up at Numbuh Three, who was looking at him to proceed in his reply.

"Tell the truth!" she added.

"Why do you need to cruddy know?" Numbuh Four snapped, now folding his arms.

"'Cause, I was wondering if you were ever scared of anything"

By this point, Wally was double irritated by the question and how his stomach kept turning. He remained silent, for he wasn't quite sure whether to say "yes" or "no". No reply made Numbuh Three assume her own conclusion, because she knew what kind of boy Wally was by now. A secretive one, who didn't like too tell his more sensitive side. Kuki let out a gasp.

"You are afraid of water!"

"I am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too, are too, are too!"

"Am not, am not, am not, am not times a gah-zillion!"

Kuki got up and began skipped around the couch singing, "Wally's afraid of wa-ter, Wally's afraid of wa-ter…" She only stopped when he caught her and covered her mouth with his palms.

"I'm not afraid of any dumb water!" Wally sneered.

"You are too! You never tried to learn to swim, and you never realize it when you can stand up in the water, and you filled your pool with _sand_."

"So? I don't _need_ to learn to swim. And sand rocks, so I put all of it in my pool."

"Then prove it."

Wally froze. Was there really even a point to this? Even if there was, Wally didn't have time to ask himself this. He was too busy trying to think of an excuse he could use to hide the truth; water was not a strong point.

"I don't need to prove anything to anyone," Wally said sourly.

"I dare you!" she said, grinning.

"Dare?" Numbuh Four's eyebrow raised. Didn't he just do a dare? Didn't Numbuh Three notice? "Dare me to what?" this interested him.

"Dare you to learn to swim, silly! But not just any dare: a double-doggy-doughnut-doctor-dare!"

That meant he couldn't back out of it.

"And if I don't?"

"Hmm… I'll show pictures of you dressed as a girl at that sleepover." More grinning.

"What!" Wally piped.

"Plus, I dared you, and everyone knows you can't back out of a dare." Since when had Numbuh Three gotten so good at being persuasive, anyway?

Wally took a second or two to think, _Here we go again_. Well, he could just say no, yet Numbuh Four isn't the kind of guy to think things through. Most likely, his decision would mostly be affected by her threat; Wally really, really didn't need pictures of himself willingly dressed as a girl, attended to an event that included…girls.

"Fine! I'll show you and your cruddy pictures of me as a girl, that I am NOT afraid of any stupid water!" Wally shouted. Kuki extended her hand, and Wally shook it. "Deal." She said smugly, and then exited the room merrily, as though nothing had happened.

"Hey…" Numbuh Four said aloud to himself a moment or two later, "No one took any dumb pictures!"

"That was perfect, Numbuh Three," said Abby once Kuki left the room.

"Yes, I guess this isn't such a bad idea after all. He should learn to swim, it would help us out on any further missions," commented Numbuh One thoughtfully. Numbuh Two was in his room because the others thought he would go mad if he found out what they were trying to do:

teach Numbuh Four to swim.


	8. Proof

School isn't fun. Ew. It's not helping any more with the story's update rate, either. Enough about me, then. Let's go onto more about Wally.

So, this chapter: it doesn't exactly include profanity, but…. Well, you just have to read to find out. XP

And: ohmigahd, I'm sooooooo sorry! I had a writer's block…and then started read more books from the beloved Jack Gantos, and it put me in the mood. Again, I'm really, sincerely sorry…

-dances- Here:

Chapter Eight:

**Proof**

Wally loved watching those ridiculous, cleanly violent Saturday morning cartoons. He was usually so entranced by them. Yet, this morning at 10:00 AM, it was written all over his face that his concentration was oddly on something else. Both emerald eyes were fixed on the TV screen, and were a bit squinted. His nose was slightly scrunched and he chewed the cereal from the bowl sitting in his lap absent mindedly.

What was he thinking about, one would wonder. Nobody passed through the room so far, so no one wondered. Wally was thinking about fish. He was wishing he could talk to them; daydreaming about it, because he could ask the fish to teach him to swim. '_Once I learn how t' swim_,' he thought, '_Numbuh Three or any o' them won't have nothin' on me!_'

Other things roamed around in his mind, as well. Why did he care? What was there to prove? Why did he really need to prove it? Wally was eager to know the answers to those questions, but was too lazy to actually think about it. Like math, sometimes. Wally is sometimes too lazy on his math homework to figure out a way (of his own) to solve the problem. It takes a lot of improvising to use his non-method, and improvising takes thought.

Then he actually realized it was another bet. It took him a while to catch up with his actions. His physical nerves have a mind of their own, but the mind was probably all patched up with duct tape and stitches. His eyebrow raised a little as he thought about how this was the second bet in a row, and his eyes began to go back to their normal shape because they were gradually widening. The more he thought about it, the more surprised he was.

Now Wally was very determined to learn how to swim, just because it was a bet. No other reason, he assured himself. He wasn't trying to impress Numbuh Three, who he had been heavily and noticeably avoiding so far because she kissed him (or at least that's what he was still thinking). Although, Wally thought he'd be more excited for that, and guessed it was because he wasn't awake. Or maybe it wasn't a kiss at all. Whatever it was, it blew shivers down his spine whenever he thought about it.

Numbuh Four stood up at a commercial, which he vaguely knew came on, and was now walking while being deep in thought. He placed his cereal bowl in the sink in the kitchen. Then he walked back and was staring down at his socks, which were loose and seemed too big. His feety pajamas were in the wash, so he was wearing baggy blue sweat pants and a gray shirt that had an orange athletic logo of some place.

So the question was how. How would he learn to swim without teaching himself, which he couldn't do, because he didn't know how. This was frustrating him.

Then, suddenly his mind was cleared, because he found a solution: Maybe you just don't learn to swim. Maybe you just go into the water, and you move your legs and arms. Yes, the more he thought about it, the more Wally decided this would work. Really, why would you take lessons for something so _easy_? It was only water. And all the other times he was defeated by the water, he was simply caught off guard.

Wally drank water. In a way, he thought he dominated this water thing already. He obviously thought about it too much. This is why Wallabee Beatles shouldn't think at all.

After thinking about it even more, Wally made a plan with himself to go to the community pool and teach himself to swim. Now he was finished pondering and figuring, so he paid attention to his cartoons.

Next week would be the last week before winter vacation. It was extremely cold out in Cleveland, Ohio, but Numbuh Four could obviously take it. The temperature was the kind of cold where your even shivering in a ski jacket at a bus stop. Of course, he was walking around the neighborhood in a T-shirt and jeans, and it always attracted attention. Numbuh Four was also bragging about he was probably 'cold blooded' because he could take it. But he'd learn. Oh yes, he'd learn.

Wally had swimming trunks. He supposed he'd just wear them to the pool. He knew where it was, and also decided to bring a towel and goggles that he found.

So, there he was, clad in sneakers, orange swimming trunks with white Hawaiian-style flowers down the sides, goggles pushed up onto his forehead and giving him a slight headache, and a towel was draped around his shoulders. He took a deep, encouraging, breath to boost his bravery. But his ego supplied that.

Wally stepped out of the very last door of the tree house, and started walking away from it. And then, he realized he messed up somewhere in his plans. First of all, he was walking around with the bottom half of his legs bare, and his entire torso only being covered by a towel. Second of all, the pool was about a mile and a half from the tree house. And third of all, before he even reached the end of the street, his face was blue, his bones were stiff, and his teeth were clattering so loudly that it was making his headache worse.

But he would not turn back. He wanted to really badly, but his feet just kept walking. Wally began to think if he made a smart choice, and started mentally cursing just because he was so cold. He tried to lie to himself, and say that he wasn't cold because all December he had been walking around with only one layer of clothing and bare arms, so this shouldn't affect him now. Eventually, Numbuh Four began confusing himself and let the war in his mind fall silent.

Wally thought of warmth. His body was numb by the time the pool was in sight. He really must have had something to prove… to no one… because no one was with him… This was stupid. It would mean nothing, because he would have no proof he did it. He was beginning to change his mind about it all.

A rustling came from some bushes near the sidewalk, while Wally was walking down the street. He glanced backwards, and thought it was just another squirrel. He hoped maybe it was a person, so he could have proof of swimming, and not drowning or making a fool of himself in shallow water for once.

Then Wally came upon the gate to the entrance of the pool. It was closed. Wally was happy, except for the fact that this meant he planned all of this and came here for no reason. Just as he was going to turn to walk away, Wally looked at the gate. He knew he could climb it. And he also knew he'd feel more satisfied if he took just a little dip.

So, he gripped the fence, but he couldn't feel it and moving the joints in his fingers kind of stung from the frost bite. As Numbuh Four climbed, with the seeming form of a spider monkey, his bones and joints and muscles began loosening up.

Wally jumped off the gate as he was halfway down the other side of the gate. Then he was facing the pool, and all the chairs, and where the lifeguard would be perched if the pool was open. The brave blonde walked up to the edge of the pool and stared down at it. There were flakes of ice, it seemed, floating around gently. He didn't know how they were there, and guessed it was from snowing or something.

More importantly, Wally never ever knew that water changes with the outdoor temperature. He didn't know that ice was made from frozen water. He knew nothing. That's where his plan had flawed.

Wally knew what to do… kind of. He dropped the towel from his shoulders, and freezing air hit him. He took off his socks and sneakers so he would stand bare footed. There was another sound from bushes nearby the gate around the pool. Wally looked in their direction, but saw no one and nothing.

His feet were half off of the edge of the pool now. Suddenly, he felt a reason to check his swimming trunks, and began adjusting them. He didn't really know how, so he was just fooling around with them. Then, he realized he was stalling. All he did was stare in the water, shaking everywhere, embracing himself with his own arms. He was entirely pale, but his face looked simply drained.

'_No more messin' around…_' Wally thought. Then he bent his legs, and went for it. He was only being held back by fear. He was in a cannon ball position, with the goggles shielding his eyes.

Then he hit the water's surface. It felt like he broke through something over the water. His eyes shot open so fast, that it may have made him dizzy. He cursed under water, but only bubbles came out. Wally looked up, and he was still sinking just like a cannon ball. He uncurled himself, and started flailing around.

The water was piercing through his numbness and briskly stabbing at him like icicles all over. It was shockingly cold. Wally would rather be set on fire; or wishing he was.

He didn't know how to do this. He was loosing air. He was blacking out. His eyes were drooping down.

Wally puffed out his cheeks and his chest. He pretended he had more air, although he didn't. He thought straight. Then, he tried to mimic how people swam. He kicked his legs furiously, like a machine. Up and down, up and down. He did the same thing with his arms, although he wasn't supposed to work his arms that way. Wally was facing towards the side of the pool. As he was facing upward, he felt something slip off of him, but he didn't look down.

Finally, he came to the surface once again. He did it; he swam. It wasn't a problem anymore. Wally swimming: that was something else. He breathed harshly, still in the water. The air was cooler than the water. Wally grasped the edge of the pool. He was so cold, that he honestly couldn't even feel his nerves. It was horrible.

Wally pushed himself back up onto the edge of the pool. He pushed his goggles up, and then opened his eyes. One of his eyebrows slanted in confusion. He felt air hitting him in a place that it wasn't before… and so he decided to look down.

Well, he didn't see his trunks. That's for sure. "Oh shit!" he gasped, and jumped right back into the pool. He shouldn't have adjusted them for no reason. He made them too loose, but he acted to quickly to realize.

This time in the pool he held onto the ledge. He didn't see the orange shorts on the surface, so he thought that they may have sunk. He pulled the goggles back down over his eyes, and looked underwater. They weren't there either.

His head burst back up out of the water, and he turned all around frantically looking. He refused to himself to actually swim around, and decided to stay near the edge of the pool. Wally officially couldn't feel his limbs and was shaking very violently.

He didn't even realize his towel, shoes, and socks were gone until he saw _him_. Yes, _him_, as in another kid. A video camera was in one of the kid's hands, and Wally's possessions were in the other.

"MICHAEL! YOU BUTTMUNCH! GIMMIE BACK MY STUFF!" Wally hollered. "No way! It's payback time!" said the Michael person.

Michael Philips was one of Wally's worst enemies. The were both overly competitive against each other in gym class at school, and when the neighborhood kids got together and played something, Wally and Michael also were competitive then.

Mike, as everyone called him, was getting revenge at Wally because his team won a deck hockey game in gym the other day. But, this definitely wasn't fair. It was only a stupid deck hockey game, which Wally wasn't even trying very hard to win.

"You made me look like a moron in front of Christy Patterson, and that was sooo not cool," Mike told Wally, "And now, it's your turn." Well, that answered to Wally why Mike was being so drastic.

"Dude, I'm _naked_, and you have it on cam-er-a. That's not fair!" Wally shouted in fury.

"Well, I'm not the one who went swimming in 20 degree weather!" It still wasn't fair. Mike just didn't understand why Wally even did this and Wally wanted his clothes back, so he got out of the pool, failing to hide what needed to be hidden, and saw Mike's face through the gate. "This isn't funny, just gimmie my shorts and I'll never beat you or any team that your on in anything ever again." Secretly, Wally planned not to keep this promise.

"Sorry shorty. Not gonna work." And with that, Michael Philips fled away from the gate. Wally could now open it from the inside, so he did. Then, he ran, completely naked besides the goggles suffocating his forehead. Wally didn't even try to hide it. He was pretty happy that the streets were deserted.

"YOU JERK! THIS ISN'T FAIR REVENGE! UGHH! I'M GONNA JACK YOU UP IN SCHOOL IF YOU DON'T GET OVER HERE!" Wally screamed, chasing after Mike, full speed. He wanted to blush in embarrassment from being naked in public, but he was actually so fired up over stupid Mike that the feeling of being frozen while moving was melting away. Or maybe it was just because he was running so fast…

He didn't care how his feet were feeling, slamming against the street. Michael was still in sight, and only two houses down. That little brown eyed, buzzed cut, freckled bastard…

Then, Mike sprinted down ahead of Wally, and made a sharp turn. When Wally reached the place he turned, Mike was out of sight. He stomped his foot onto the street.

"MICHAEL PHILIPS, YOU ARE SO DEAD IN SCHOOL ON MONDAY, THAT IT'S NOT EVEN FUNNY!" Wally hollered throughout the neighborhood. He kept screeching "GET BACK HERE," and vicious threats that were said at such a volume that Wally was probably attracting attention from people who were in their houses to the scene.

So, he walked to the tree house on numb feet, thinking angry, angry, thoughts about Michael that made him even more furious so that he forgot about the fact that he was butt naked.

Yet, he remembered as he was walking up the tree house steps. '_Oh, crud…_' Wally thought. They would all see Wally and laugh madly at him.

While Wally was in the elevator, he felt his body heat returning. He was still wet from the pool water, and now with sweat from chasing for Michael three quarters of a mile. He was still panting.

Wally thought quick. Someone was probably in the lobby, at least one person. It was the afternoon, and something probably happened. He clasped his hands over what he didn't want to be seen until the elevator door parted. He sighed in relief that it was clear.

Numbuh Four then went back into the elevator and tapped the numbers of the hall his room was in. He caught his breath and felt how cold his throat was. Wally was most likely the craziest kid in the neighborhood, or maybe even in school.

Then he was in his room. He put on boxers, and his cozy, warm feety pajamas. He was exhausted, and his joints were feeling kind of stiff again. His nose was running. He sniffed, and lay his head down on the pillow in the middle of the boxing ring. Another cold?

Wally's hands were placed across his stomach. He wondered if he would ever get his sneakers back. Then, while he was thinking of a way to get revenge on stupid Mike, he drifted into sleep. But he had one last vague thought before he was entirely asleep: that there was proof that Wally could swim. And it was in Michael Philips camera.

Numbuh Four decided that he wanted it, just so he could shove it in everyone's face.


	9. Game Plan

So anyway, now that everyone is clear on why I'm back (author's note before), here it is: Chapter 9!!!! Oh yeah, baby! Man, this stuff is flier than a spaceship. I swear, buddy. And it's the third longest chapter so far in the story.

Just to let you know, this stuff is all technical and I guess kind of boring. It's how Wally plans to get the footage Mike took in his possession; it's good to read if you want to know how he possibly does it, though. It's also good to read if you don't want to be confused when you read into the setting of Chapter Ten. :D

**Chapter Nine: Game Plan**

The luscious green leaves of the shrub tickled the surface of Wally's face. He crouched down within them, clad in a dark blue beanie, warm over his ears, the ever-so-famous orange hoodie (with a thermal underneath for extra warmth), baggy jeans, and sneakers. Both eyes squinted through a window during this chilly December afternoon. It was 36 degrees Fahrenheit, yet Wally was too manly for his jacket. Or at least, he thought so.

But what window was he peering through? Micheal Philips'. The window through which Wally could view Mike's kitchen, and beyond that, his den. Both parents were at work. Mike was an only child.

In the simplest of terms, it was pre-"go time", for actual go time would be when Wally had his plan clear in his mind.

Normally, the plan would be to attack Micheal Philips at first sight the next day at school. Yet, there was no school, because today was the last day of school before Christmas vacation. It was officially break, and Numbuh Four couldn't be more ecstatic.

Micheal was sitting over in the den, watching TV and munching on chips. Look at him, in his tight little sweatpants and long sleeved red t-shirt. Sitting there with his buzzed haircut and his freckles. What a geek.

Wally's eyes were scanning the insides of the house for the video camera which had footage him standing flabbergasted and naked on the edge of the public pool; he had lost his shorts among the shards of ice floating around and Micheal had it all on tape.

A growl emerged from the back of Wally's throat at the thought. He knew copies of that tape would go all around school. Everyone would see it. It would be beyond teasing; it would be mortification. He would be chased out of school from embarrassment.

Wally crawled along the perimeter of the house to the next window, through which Wally was parallel now to Micheal. Suddenly, Wally fell all the way down to the ground below the window and hastily army crawled to the next wall of the house.

If he was caught doing this, he'd also be labeled a stalker, which was pathetic. But Wally absolutely needed to get that tape back, or else.

The house had light blue siding and clean cut hedges and rosebushes. It was a pansy house. Not to mention the lawn was thriving and luscious as much as the bushes, even through the blistering cold atmosphere.

There were two stories of the house.

Michael's room must be on the top. What was Wally doing prowling the bottom floor?

How would he get to the top windows? Wally was willing to do anything to get that tape, no matter how ridiculous.

Just as he began pondering over solutions, he found himself in the backyard, where there was a shed-sized indoor patio built on.

It was perfect. Easily could Wally climb onto the roof of it and into the window that was miraculously open above it.

_Who the hell would open a window in this kind of weather?_ Wally thought as he stood.

He checked out the outside of the indoor patio for an easy way on top. His face felt hot and his heart was pounding. The atmosphere was suddenly sharp and his ears became that of a fox's. The ability of his reflexes suddenly tripled, and he readied himself to jump and sprint with complete accuracy. This was the role of a KND operative, this way it was on duty. And although it wasn't quite KND duty, it was just as important to Wally to get that tape.

Abruptly, a loud, ferocious noise pierced the prim silence and startled Numbuh Four. They were deep, tough barks, and following them was thumping on the ground.

A guard dog. On the loose. After him.

First of all, this dog must have been some kind of predator, as Wally immediately imagined it hiding in the tall, uncut grass over by the chain fence that divided Michael's yard with the neighbor behind's yard. In one glance, Wally learned that it was baring its numerous spiky white fangs and that it was a beastly black and brown Rottweiler.

For only a spilt second did Wally stand numbly, as shock had slapped him in the face. After he let out a shout, he dashed, he ran, he sprinted like a skinny, swift little beast himself.

He ran back around the side of Michael's house, luckily for him before Michael could even check out why his dog was so loud all of a sudden. Up the front lawn Wally darted, his face already rosy and numb from the cold whipping it all over.

The Rottweiler was gaining on him superiorly. Wally was no match for it. But just when Wally stepped over the perimeter of the front lawn, his chaser halted clumsily. Fortunately for him, Michael's dog was wearing one of those electric collars that will shock it if it leaves the property.

When Numbuh Four processed this, he turned around and began ridiculing the beast he was fearing over not even seconds ago. The dog was snapping at him and wrinkling its snout gruesomely.

Okay, it's obvious this was really stupid. Wally didn't even notice Michael leaning over on his shoulder against the railing aligning the porch with a remote in his hand. Wally didn't even notice Micheal pressed a button on that remote, meaning when he continued annoying the Rottweiler, it was set free to continue chasing him.

The dog didn't realize this, not until Michael snapped his fingers, gaining both Wally and the Rottweiler's attention. "Rex!" he commanded.

Rex, which was the Rottweiler, perked up his ears and turned to face Michael. "Go 'head, boy," Michael cooed.

Again, Wally was dumbfounded. He immediately began running again. And Rex ran him like a track star.

Wally was over throwing tin trash cans to block Rex's path. He was hurdling over hedges and bead's of sweat were running down from his head.

He would find shelter from this animal at the tree house, which was only a block away in front of him, up in the sky because it was so huge. Still, it was a tough chase since Rex was so quick and swift.

At a point, Wally's legs began to ache, so he tried taking lighter steps, but this only conserved more strength. He could feel the dog puffing on the backs of his knees, on his jeans. Rex prodded Wally in the butt and Wally forced himself to run faster after he was done yelping and screaming.

Wally turned down a street off course. He had to jump a nearby fence, if he wanted to live.

Wally hopped up and grasped the edge of the wooden fence, his back facing the street. He desperately tried to scramble up it, but Rex clenched Wally's ankle in his mouth and sunk his teeth into his flesh.

"AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!" Wally yelled in pain. Rex's teeth were sharp, and felt like thick needles piercing him over and over. With his other foot he stomped on Rex's snout, which went successfully for Wally as Rex released him and Wally used some well hidden strength to heave himself up over the fence.

The next thing he knew he was falling head first at some dirt, and the world was physically upside-down. Wally disregarded it and quickly scrambled to his feet and whipped around to see slithers of Rex's face through the fence.

"Wooo.." Wally sighed. He put his hands on his hips and spun back around to find a face, with the mouth in a long oval and the eyes wide and it was an appalled face, staring at him.

"H-hey…" Wally said meekly to a little girl who was sitting in a plastic lawn chair on the back porch by herself. She stayed frozen as Wally's sheepish grin faded.

"I'm gonna, um… leave now… a heh…"

So he limped and winced and cringed, all which went unnoticed to him, and climbed up the fence and hopped into another backyard now, Rex already returning to the Philip's household, lucky for Wally.

On the way down the street, continuing to the tree house, he sat on an electrical box and decided to examine his painful ankle which a dog just sank his teeth into unmercifully. There were 7 deep little holes, Wally counted, all with blood dripping down them around the back of his ankle. It hurt for Wally to put pressure on his heel and toes.

He continued, trying to be all brave and not limp, as he was told that's a bad thing to do and does not help the process of healing.

Obviously, he needed a new strategy to get the tape. He needed to go home and think it through as it meant enough to him.

The next day was spent in his room. Not just the afternoon, either. Since the early morning did he work at it. Quietly, occasionally disturbed by his mother for she found this to be so strange of him, he drew out the apparatus that would assist him in this clever, well- thought out plot. For, in the morning and the youngest minutes of the day did he find the solution to this issue. All by himself, too. To many it would be labeled remarkable, from Wallabee Beatles especially.

Up front, it had struck Wally that he had to prepare for Christmas. He had to decorate and write out his list and plan what he would do with the approximate amount of money he received from his rich Australian relatives. Likewise, he would be spending the break with his friends and maybe even in some snow. So, he wouldn't have time to spy on Michael Philips.

And for this solution he had come up with, a lot of watching had to be done. What Wally was going to do was simply ask Mrs. Philips for the whole camera when Michael wasn't there. When he got it, he would search and find every possible tape

There had to be something he did every week on a schedule that made it so he couldn't be at the house, right? Wally was going to find what that thing was, when it started, how long it lasted, and when it was over so he could make his move.

Wally was going to make a camouflage video camera that he would take home and study the contents of and what it had recorded regularly. This experiment would go on for about a week, which Michael could have plenty of DVDs with contents of a naked Wally Beatles.

Wally could just see a free copy in everyone's mailbox, with Christmas colored ribbons and everything. He pulled up this mental image whenever he lost motivation to keep planning.

Though Wally wasn't smart academically or strategically, he had street smarts and at least some common sense. It probably wouldn't take Numbuh Two a whole morning and afternoon to plan all this. Too bad Numbuh Four couldn't ask for help, as more suggestions would have made him more confident.

His main uncertainties about doing this were if Michael found out and if the camera he was designing somehow died. To make sure it didn't, he would go out in the middle of the night and take the camera, charge it, and put in more tape.

There were a lot of little things he would have to do for the experiment. He would have to hide all the evidence; make it clean from all his friends and family. He would have to stay up and fast forward the tape until he saw someone walk in and out of the house. And to even get up late enough in the night to check on the tape, he would have to be staying at the tree house for the next week, as he could take no chances of his mother finding out he went swimming that day in that weather.

It was tiring and stressful and Wally was extremely happy with himself when he got the whole thing figured out. He couldn't write anything on paper either, in case his mother found it in the trash or something.

Wallabee Beatles made himself a plan, and he made sure it was fool proof too. This was no game to him. This was war.

Midnight was the sky and miniscule were the stars and orange and glowing brightly were the streetlights, as careful and hasty and uneasy was the Wally.

First of all, the only reason he could see was because he had borrowed Nigel's

high tech night vision goggles. He did have an advantage to all this, which was that he could use any KND material to assist him.

And you know what? Wally discovered all that drawing and blue printing and frustration was for nothing because in one of the highly vaulted rooms of the tree house, amongst those where all the weaponry and gadgets and evidence and such were kept, Wally came upon a wireless spy video camera. It resembled a tick in size and shape, and functioned so that Wally could control it from a station he had set up in his room.

The station was under a hidden trap door somewhere on his boxing ring, though no one ever suspected it. Fool proof, again. He felt like a genius, unaware complete paranoia was over riding his senses, basically.

So, there was Wally, clad in charcoal cargo pants, a black hoodie, a puffy black Timberland jacket, black gloves, a black scarf, and his navy beanie again, his heavy breathing appearing as golden puffs under the streetlights when they illuminated him from overhead.

It was 14 degrees Fahrenheit and even when Wally had two pairs of long johns and a thermal on under his ebony spy outfit, he was shivering uncontrollably.

He acted like he didn't notice, but being outside alone at this time of night (2:00 am he left) was really creepy. Besides the fact he was in a giant neighborhood

filled with friendly people, where he could simply scream and in the next minute someone would wake up to see what was going on.

When he spotted Michael's house, he hid behind some nearby bushes, face numb and icy. He decided he would place the camera on the mailbox, on the tall wooden stake directly underneath the back half of the tin box.

Should he sprint or crawl down the sidewalk?

First Wally jogged, then he heard a snap in the bushes and collapsed to the ground and rolled beneath the bumper of a car. When he realized it was only an animal, he continued, but army crawling with his elbows and the insides of his legs.

The mailbox was three feet away and he crouched up.

He took a box out of his pocket, no bigger than his hand.

Pinched between his fingers, he took out the tick-spy-camera.

He pressed it against the place in the mailbox, confirmed it was securely attached, stood up fully, and sprinted all the way back to the tree house at once.

Contrary to what his conscience had said would happen, he went unseen by anyone in the neighborhood- even Rex the Rottweiler.

Halfway up the block, after he made a right on Michael's street, Wally stopped running and tried to warm himself up. His hands were numb beneath his gloves, and he held them up to his mouth and tried warming them up with his heated breath while walking.

No one was watching. Nothing would happen. It was that simple, and he was sneaky. Not to mention tired.

When he reached the tree house, though, something did happen. Because, as he tiptoed across the floorboards to the elevator, a voice suddenly said,

"Beatles, where you thank you goin'?"

A gasp came upon him as he tensed up. He didn't answer- instead whipped around frantically to find the speaker, who by the voice he knew was Numbuh Five.

"In the kitchen, dummy."

"Uh… oh." Wally walked into the kitchen, still in his suspicious black clothes.

Abby eyed him. She was sitting at the table, eating a bowl of cereal. Numbuh Four was almost unwilling to sit down across from her, seeing as he knew where this was going.

"What in the world are you doin'?" Numbuh Five wanted to know.

"I was… ehh—"

"Boy, there is no point in lyin' to me, Numbuh Five knows you were up to no good."

Wally's mouth tried to shape more words. He should just tell her. Usually, he'd insist there was nothing going on, but he was tired and for once, he merely didn't have the strength to make up another stupid lie.

"Alright, okay. 'Ere's what happened," Wally began, "The other day, I went for a swim and I lost my shorts and Michael Philips somehow caught the whole thing on tape and he wants to get me back for embarrassing him a while ago in front of this girl or whateva, and I just know he's gonna make copies of it and give one to everyone."

Numbuh Five stared at him blankly for a few silent seconds. He stared back.

"What made you want to swim? Especially in this weather? Numbuh Five thought you were terrified of water." Wally expected her to exclaim how much of a blockhead he was, instead of ask something about the details. That's what Numbuh Five did though, threw him a little curve ball like that. But if she never did that, he wouldn't like talking to her as much, let alone spill out his feelings to her.

"I just wanted to, okay?" Wally shot. Now, admitting he was doing it for such a sensual reason was simply out of the question. He would admit something cheesy like that before he would admit why he randomly disliked Ace.

"Okay, okay, calm down!" Abby said in a shrill tone. She paused a second and grinned. "It couldn't be, perhaps, that you wanted to show yo'self you weren't afraid, could it?"

"Haha, funny." That was all Wally could say, as she hit the nail right on the head. "I'm hittin' the hay. G'night, Numbuh Five," and he scurried out of the room before she could read him like a book any further.

Wally lay comfortably, smug because he had the first phase of his plan completed. Now there were only two more to go; checking the camera and retrieving the camera.

It was then that he remembered how there was proof in the camera that Wally could swim….

But, he couldn't even show anyone because of the fact he was naked.

Well, there was also the fact that Michael may not have even recorded him swimming at all and maybe only began recording when his shorts slipped off. Who knows how long the creep was watching?

Ugh, he needed that tape!

"Wallyyyy?" he heard someone call, their voice muffled because he was under the floorboards. Yet, he could distinctly hear the words.

It was Numbuh Three, probably calling him to play tea party.

"Are you in here Numbuh Four?" she continued. Numbuh Four ignored her, until she said, "Well, no ice cream for him, then."

Ice cream?! Wally lurched up out of his seat from in front of the screens and controls. The secret alcove was not very spacey, the size of a shallow cave. 5 feet high and 10 feet in elbow space. It was really a gap between floors and bordered by gray bricks. Wally knew it existed since he first chose the room to be his, he simply never used it for anything until now.

The equipment Wally clumsily installed, no, miraculously installed, was a simple television with a 12" screen and enormous satellite sitting on top, which attracted the rays the solar-powered tick-camera gave out. That's how he could see what it was filming, he understood.

Hoagie had to explain all of this to Wally, but Wally did it himself. He pretended he was interested in filming, that's all. Hoagie gave him all the information he needed, like an oral instruction manual that Wally had to take notes on and use from there. Yet, that's not to say it still wasn't a challenge: Wally would be wary of electrical outlets for quite some time.

Just as Wally grabbed the handle to the trap door, something flashed by on the screen. He almost squealed—this was really going to work! Okay, well he wasn't honestly going to squeal. Although, he was excited things were going somewhere, as the shapes and colors and format of Michael Philip's house was imprinted into his mind forever, he'd been watching it still for so long.

Numbuh Three's talk about ice cream was forgotten as Wally gnawed his lower lip and his heart flung at the sudden thought that he was doing some heavy-duty stalking. If someone caught him, he would be more humiliated than if someone even got the tape.

Would he?

Was that true?

Was he taking this too far?

…..

…..

…..

As Wally thought about that and watched Mr. Philips open the door to his Nissan, his heart suddenly sank.

He was making a mountain out of a molehill.

It _was_ true.

For some reason, anger was triggered inside of him. He didn't know whether it was because he was so proud of himself after going through all this trouble, or because he was so stupid and could have threatened Michael into giving that tape back but had to be all clever and what-not.

And in that view, his heart was lifted right back up. Instead of using his old brash ways, for once Wally Beatles took a step back and thought ahead.

Never mind. He was not taking it too far—intelligence was just on his side for this one thing.

So if someone found out, they'd maybe think he was secretly a genius. Yet, he wasn't going to spend more time trying to drop clues.

He was going to get the tape, and he was going to do it the smart way.

Yup. Sure was.

Michael played ice hockey. Year-round, in a league that was some $400. His practice started at 11:30 and ended at 4:00.

Practicing for 4 and a half hours was a little ridiculous to many, almost even to Wally. Therefore, Wally had to confirm this and check the following two days. It was true. According to his evidence, Michael would carry a duffel bag along with him into the Philips' family van along with his mother, and wouldn't return for 4 and a half hours.

That was too easy. Wally knew he probably played some year-round sport.

So, Wally decided he would go next Thursday to ask Michael's mother for his camera. Along with him, he would bring a back pack and in would he load the camera itself and all the tapes he could find.

A thief and a stalker. It was great.

Until then, Wally would put his teammate's suspicions to rest. Him being gone for such long gaps of time (because he was watching the camera, occupied by his Game Boy) made them curious, of course. It was funny that they would never guess what he was doing. Everyone thought he was so stupid, but in this time of need perhaps he was granted some temporary intelligence.

Or maybe he got the whole idea (subconsciously) from an action spy movie he saw at the movies a couple weeks ago with Nigel and Hoagie. Either or.

Wally stood up on the padded computer chair he had smuggled into his secret cubbyhole, and gently pushed up the trap door, just a crack in case someone was in his room. He had definitely become too insecure over this whole procedure.

Nope, all clear. Wally thrust the rest of the door open and hopped out. The room was only five feet high, right? About a foot higher than his ten-year-old self.

Wally walked out along the blue wrestling mat and ducked between the wires to exit his room. He wondered what the others were doing, and desired to cause some trouble.There hasn't been a mission for a while, strangely. Stupid adults were probably planning simultaneous fiascos they would unleash on Christmas day. That happened the very first year Sector V came together. It was horrible; but Wally and his teammates survived. As he shoved his fists in his hoodie pocket, he thought more about this.

Half an hour later he found himself chillin' back in a recliner chair with Numbuh One and Numbuh Two sharing the couch, and Numbuh Five in the other recliner in the room.

Out of all the jillion-zillion rooms in the tree house, 80 of the team was in one.

"Where's Kuki?" Wally asked.

The other members were silent, as if they hadn't heard him. Yet, then they all exchanged secret glances, which irritated Wally.

"She's listening to music in her room and playing tea party," Numbuh Five answered.

Wally groaned. Kuki listened to the stupidest music, too. Her stupid bubble gum pop. Wally wasn't even familiar with the bands or the songs, since they made him want to throw up. Then she listened to R&B, which wasn't all that bad but Wally still thought it was girly music. Numbuh Four liked punk rock. Or regular rock. Never any girly singers, either.

Numbuh Four didn't even think about them exchanging glances, what that could have meant.

He continued watching two more TV shows, until Numbuh Three bounced into the room.

"Hey guys!" she chimed merrily. "Hey, Wally, where have you been?"

Wally nearly choked on air. "With my mom and dad."

"Oh. Well, guess what?" She was now hovering over his head.

"What?" he answered bluntly. Unless it was about a mission or some way to have fun, he didn't care.

"Jamie had to go on vacation, so you're coming with me to the Rainbow Monkey theme park."

Wally merely rolled his eyes and sat up in the chair, the back of it following his torso, as it operated by springs. He went back to watching TV.

Thus, he didn't notice Abby give a mischievous wink over to Kuki.

"Okaaaaaay," Kuki said with false defeat, "I suppose I really should take _Ace_, since he's going on vacation, too."

Of course, Wally was suddenly furious as Kuki spun to walk out of the room. Ace?! Alone?! With Numbuh Three?! Oh, the pain. The pain and flaming jealousy.

"Ace?! Why can't you take Numbuh Five?!" Wally cried in panic.

"Numbuh Five went to the Rainbow Monkey Theme park with Numbuh Three on Tuesday."

"Then why do you need to go twice in one week?!" he shouted at Kuki.

"Because I need to use up my season pass before it expires after New Years!"

"So you're going every cruddy day?!"

"No, every three days, _Wallabee_."

Wally scowled, defeated. He heard Hoagie whisper to Nigel "Oooh, like a razor blade." Nigel chuckled.

"Would you shut up!" Wally snapped at him. Kuki started to continue walking out of the room. "Wait!" Wally cried quickly, though he didn't exactly mean to. Now Numbuh Five was snickering. He growled in frustration.

The Rainbow Monkey Theme Park was Wallabee Beatles' hell. It truly was. All the cuddly cuteness overwhelmed him so much, it made him want to throw up. It disgusted him the way an explosive cockroach would disgust the average girl.

Still, he couldn't let Numbuh Three spend the day with Ace.

He simply couldn't.

"Okay…" he sighed. "I'll go with you." Defeated once more.

"Yay!!!" Kuki cheered, ecstatic Numbuh Five's plan really did work.

It was more of an experiment, honestly. And the objective was to prove exactly how jealous of Ace Wally was. Pretty jealous, by the looks of it. If he was willing to step into hell over it.

"Go get your coat and meet me out front!" Oh, that Numbuh Three sure was in a grand mood now.

Numbuh Four slouched out of the one of the many lobbies the tree house is composed of, growling something like, "Am I serious with this crud?" under his breath.

When Abby, Hoagie, and Nigel were left to themselves, they all began cracking up. This went on for a minute or so until their insides were weak.

"Woo, that is so great," sighed Hoagie, calming down.

"I don't know why it's so funny," Nigel analyzed, "the way _it's_ so obvious, I suppose…"

Only Numbuh Five had such a power to understand people, to detect a smidgen's tone of sadness in Nigel's voice. She kept it silent though, didn't prod in with a, "Does that make you sad or somethan', Numbuh One? Sounds so." Yet, although she kept it silent, she made a mental note about it. This was not the first time Numbuh One has shown extremely subtle signs of grief when it came to talking about Wally and Kuki. Weird.

Kuki stood at the gate of the Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park, eyes wide and curious as well as bubbling with excitement. _It was as if she didn't memorize every square inch of the frickin' place_, though Wally. As if she had never even been there before but had been anticipating it for a long time.

The doors swung open, then the theme song blared through the speakers aligning the path she and Wally walked down together. He was beyond disgusted with himself at this point, his expression beyond play dislike.

Numbuh Four was…

Sad. Angry. How could he keep letting this happen to him? How could he keep hating this place so much, yet give in to going to it so easily? He truly, sincerely hated spending time at this place. More so was he angry and sad that Numbuh Three had so much control over him. That was not only disgusting to him, that the girl had such power over him, it was so pathetic that it actually stabbed Wally's ego down. This was simply devastating to him. Once or twice was okay, but daily?! "Wally, my candy fell out of the bag, can I have some of yours?" she asked sweetly yesterday. "Oh, Wally, I lost my money! Can I borrow some? Pleeeeeeaaaaassssee?" she begged the same day. "Wally, wanna play Rainbow Monkeys?" "Wally, wanna help me set up for Tea Party?" "Wally, will you please come to the Rainbow Monkey theme park with meee?"

At this point, in thinking of all of this, Wally began gritting his teeth. The thought came to him that if this didn't stop, Kuki would control him and his time and space for the rest of his life! No more wrestling, no more soccer, no more football, no more video games, no more candy of his own, no more thinking of his own, no more time of his own.

All these thoughts summed up to a steaming furious and frustrated Wallabee Beatles.

"Hey Numbuh Four," Kuki's voice suddenly chimed in between all of his raging thoughts, "can you—"

"NO!" shouted Wally in the middle of the theme park. "NO, I CAN'T, KUKI! I CAN'T DO ANYTHING FOR YOU! I WON'T DO ANYTHING FOR YOU! NOT ANY MORE! SO YOU CAN JUST TAKE YOUR STUPID RAINBOW MONKEYS AND LEAVE ME THE CRUD ALONE!!!!"

Then, he stomped off. "I DON'T EVEN LIKE YOU!" he added when he was three yards away. He didn't even look over his shoulder at her to see how hard she was crying, because he didn't even care.

Maybe he was being a little dramatic.

But wouldn't you be, too, if you were an adolescent boy who's life had been taken over by a gorgeous, bubbly, charming, adorable, skinny little Asian girl? Taken over more and more by the day? By the day, as Wally matured. By the day, as Wally fell for her even more.

It was all so sickening, Wally had to pause and heave in a trash can. He really did.

Then he looked up, dizzy. Pink, purple, yellow, green, orange, blue, red whizzed around him, making his vision a blurry rainbow ribbon.

Wally fell to his knees. Girls and mothers collected by him a bit, after a second.

He needed to throw up again.


	10. Changing

Hay guys! P

Hope your liking the story. As you may know, there hasn't been a bet lately. :D

….and no, it's not in this chapter.

This chapter gets OOC at the end—but you'll see why if you read about Wally's thoughts.

Btw, everyone's eleven in this story. If I said they were ten somewhere, lemme know.

Hope you like it.

**Chapter Ten: Changing**

There were two unhappy, sullen face mixed in with the perky, hyperactive hundreds of children at the Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park.

One of them was Wallabee Beatles, of course, the reason could be self-explanatory. Not in this case, though. It was true Wally hated Rainbow Monkeys, but that was only part of the reason why he was so upset. The other parts of the reason he was so aggravated was because he had just yelled at Kuki Sanban and immediately after he ignored her incoming sobbing and walked away, he almost smacked himself in the face foe being so horrible. Now, he was confused. He was also lost—literally. Usually, he followed Kuki around the park and didn't even pay attention to where he was going out of the seemingly hundreds of other times she had dragged him here. Thus, there he was, trudging miserably through his hell, searching for a way to escape.

The second unhappy, sullen face in the Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park was astonishingly Kuki Sanban. Despite she was a well-known lover and hardcore fan of Rainbow Monkeys, and the Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park was like her second home—no, better—she was devastated. Wallabee Beatles was completely outraged with her and basically had broken her heart and didn't even glance behind to comfort her and apologize. Sure, maybe it was true that she occasionally took advantage of him, but she only wants to spend time with him! She just wants to be on his good side! She just wants to be friends with the guy! Okay, well, maybe "occasionally" forcing him to do whatever she wanted to do was a little unfair, but she had to admit she was addicted to the fact she had Wallabee Beatles whipped. Wallabee Beatles, the toughest kid at Gallagher Elementary. It was amusing, that's all. So now, poor Kuki sulked through Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park, crushed, and with sticky cheeks and puffy red eyes and a dissolving lump in her throat. She was just going to go home; it's not like she could enjoy Rainbow Monkeys Theme Park in this condition.

It was rare to see even one sad face at that park, but two was really something.

Suddenly….one of those faces…changed. Slowly. Gradually. Over a minute's time. Only one of them were suddenly happy again.

But as quickly as that one face morphed from sullen to curious to excited did it change right to mischievous and troublesome.

It was Wally. Wally was grinning slyly and devilishly. His eyes were locked right onto this kid, this kid with a dusty brown buzz cut and freckles and a glowing face of joy. This kid wearing a large gray pullover hoodie and jeans and black sneakers was Michael: it was Michael Philips.

There were numerous things Wally could have done at this moment. He could have taken thirty snapshots of evidence that Michael Philips was at the Rainbow Monkey Theme Park instead of ice hockey practice. Wally could have snuck around behind Michael for the rest of the day and see all the stupid girly things he would do. Wally could have even called his name.

And that's when he spotted that Michael's slinky arm was around something. Someone. Someone familiar. A girl… wearing green. A girl wearing a green sweater underneath a pink ski jacket and ear muffs. A girl with a silky, shiny thin layer of dark hair. A girl with rosy cheeks and a comfortable smile.

It took Wally a moment to come back from the shock and realize Michael had totally stolen Kuki. In that instant that Wally realized it while his jaw dropped and the top corner of his lip twitched and his eyes narrowed with fire in them, Michael sensed someone looking at him. So he turned around, and, finally seeing Wally after hearing about all the terrible things he had done to Kuki Sanban all day, he stuck his tongue out mockingly without Kuki even noticing.

The worst part was Kuki was the happy one. Now Wally was sullen again; but this time he was powered by blind rage. It was as if the inside of him was so dry, fire sparked from the lightning bolt of realization that had just struck him.

Wally turned around and tried to simply walk away, but the wildfire inside of him thrived surprisingly as if trying to ignore it was only tossing more wood into the flames. He got mad so quickly that he wasn't even freezing anymore; his teeth were still chattering and his bare face and tightly balled up fists were still numb, but he couldn't feel it. The rage took him over so suddenly that he couldn't control it and it only grew.

He had spun around swiftly on his heel and the next thing he knew he was _sprinting _up to a kid wearing an oversized gray hoodie, the pink and green and black and startled figure beside him a blur as he took Michael to the ground. They landed hard onto unforgiving concrete.

Wally was sitting on Michael's stomach, and already had his fist in the air. Michael's limbs were a little longer than Wally's, but Wally was a true pure fighter and he was quicker.

But Wally still was given a blow in the stomach, winded, yet sprung back to his feet. Michael scrambled up as well. Kids were starting to crowd around immediately, pretty much all girls who were surprisingly interested in the fight.

Wally was still catching his breath when Michael drove his shoulder into Wally to take him back down, but Wally gripped him around the neck and swung him down, then body slammed him. Michael fidgeted around roughly and it soon became to hard for Wally to pin him down, thus Michael slipped away.

Wally did this evasive move where he sort of tumbled along the ground on his hands and feet, kind of resembling a crab, and rolled up to his feet again. He threw a punch immediately with one fist, connecting roughly to Michael's face and using the other fist to uppercut him in the stomach.

Oh, that made Michael really mad. Absolutely furious. Michael slammed his tight, white-knuckled fist across Wally's face, knocking him to the ground.

For a second, Wally felt alarmed. Then, his face ached as well as stung as if something had pierced through his cheek and he was dizzy and wounded and, ugh, the match was definitely on. No "mercy", no "uncle". It was just on.

Wally leaped onto Michael again, crashing him into the ground even harder. Michael landed on his side and began squirming around uncontrollably, but Wally completely ignored it and jabbed him in the face a few times with all his might. Michael's nose and lip began to bleed and his eye was instantly purple.

Up on his knees, Wally slapped Michael in the face and through gritted teeth said, "Tell your mama I'll be by 'round 12:00!"

Michael grabbed Wally's arms and, with all of his might, bashed Wally sideways into the blacktop and with both fist joined to make and knuckled ball, brought a blow straight down into Wally's groin.

Now Michael was sitting on Wally, Wally grabbing at his hoodie and neck relentlessly and both boys receiving many punches to the side of the head or the eye or the mouth or chin or stomach. They tumbled around on the ground for a while, throwing hooks or throwing one fist then the other. Both combatants were so engrossed in repeatedly throwing all their might at one another through their fists that they didn't notice the thick chaotic audience encircling them.

The fight went on for a good 15 minutes. These two had anger stored up for each other, all the competitive hatred and envy collected from every challenge lost over the elementary years now unleashed in this bloody, purple, black, and blue tussle.

It kept going on and on, the fury whittled into a basic desire to connect fist with bone. Wally was in so much pain tears were slipping from his eyes; every limb was black and blue or scraped and his face was gruesome; bruised and swollen and blood was dripping from his forehead and nose and mouth. Michael had worse damage done to him, though. Wally definitely won the brawl by a long-shot.

It was ended when the life-sized Rainbow Monkeys, which were really employees in over-sized furry suits, got in between the punches and held both boys back.

Wally couldn't remember what happened from there—he passed out with two big, furry blue paws gripping him under the arms.

The pain and agony that surged through Wally while he was dealing punches and kicks was nothing compared to what he suffered now. His arms had dark bruises all over them, as well as a slits and scrapes and dry blood from skidding against concrete. His face in general throbbed with the most ginger brush, at which he would shriek in sheer pain.

He awoke the next afternoon. Before he even lifted his heavy eyelids, his heavy swollen purple eyelids, he felt hot tears steaming in the brim of his eye. It hurt just to lie down on his back.

Almost silently, he whimpered, and sobbed very quietly, then opened his throbbing eyes.

His breaths were short and shallow, a lump in his throat. Tears slipped down his cheeks. Pain seeped into his sore muscles, into his pulse. It was too intense for him.

Carefully, Wally lifted up his right hand, blinking tears away.

That's when he noticed Numbuh Three seated at his bedside. She was staring at him right in the face, looking shocked.

For a minute or two, they stared at each other. Wally was thinking a lot of things in those moments. What could he say to her? About how he had yelled at her? About how he pummeled her latest subject of flirtation? About how she had just seen him _crying_?

Blankly, he gazed up at her. He wore a solemn expression on his face, and although there were a trillion words rushing to his mind to say, he felt as if he could never speak even one.

Kuki stood up and walked away, back straight, head held high.

"Uhh…" he said, "Wait!" he voice was raspy and his throat ached.

She paused at the door frame, her back still to him.

"I-…. I…" Wally tried. "I…." It was going dark. He had exhausted all of his energy already. He fell back asleep.

Christmas was in two weeks.

* * *

Wally lay at home in his bed for an entire week. He watched the TV in his room and would only get up to pee, in which case his mother would assist him in hobbling to the bathroom. He would try to be brave and not yelp, but pained noises would escape him anyway.

Mrs. Beatles was very disappointed in Wally at first. She pitied him more so, though, and nursed him and everything. Wally would be left home alone when she would go out to run errands (Wally was clueless to the fact that she was really going out to buy his Christmas gifts).

All the time alone helped Wally to keep thinking about all that had happened. With Michael, with Kuki, his general hard-headed anger. He wanted to change his ways. It was good that he had time to himself, to think a little bit.

He didn't care about the video camera any more.

He didn't care about Michael Philips, his past enemy, any more.

He didn't care about his twelfth birthday coming up in the summer.

There was something he found he did care about, though. He cared about Numbuh Three. The more time he gave to think about it, the more he realized he wanted to talk to her and apologize.

Hoagie called him every day his mother went out. She moved the phone to Wally's night table, as friends were calling daily, ones from school who wanted to know all about the fight.

"Wallabee," his mother called from down the hallway outside his bedroom. "I'm going out for a little while, okay?"

"Sure, mum." His voice was there but his focus was not just on the television.

"If you need any help, Mrs. Gilligan is right around the corner and Mr. Tatum is right across the street."

"I'll be fine."

"Okay.." she said awkwardly, eye right on him as she left the room.

A few minutes later Wally heard the front door jingle as his mother locked it and shake the house as she closed it. Of course, she took Joey along.

Wally was watching Sponge Bob when the phone rang. It was Hoagie and Abby, checking up on him from the tree house. Wally was grounded from hanging out with his friends, even though he couldn't even bare to stand.

"'Ello?"

"Hey, Numbuh Four!" "Hey, man, how are ya?"

"'Ey guys," Wally said, a little weakness in his voice. "I've been bettah, but I sure am livin'…. in misery and pain…"

"Well, it was yo' own fault fo' fighting that boy. You're the one who went at him. But you should see his sorry b'hind! Woo, did you give him a whoopin'!" said Abby.

Wally chuckled proudly. "I haven't scrapped it like that in a while," he said, in a thoughtful tone.

"I hope you get better soon, bud. You better be able to walk on your own to come over here and help us finish decorating for Christmas."

"Haha, remember how we had that mission last year with the teacher appreciation holiday thing, and those Christmas team people? I totally fo'get all their names."

The three went on talking about that for a little bit, until Hoagie suddenly asked, very seriously, "So, what did you do to Kuki? You said you'd tell us."

Wally felt a pang in his heart; it was true. When they called yesterday, they reported that Kuki was moping around more than ever, and bugged Wally to tell them what he did because she sure wouldn't.

"I…erm…" Wally hesitated. "I yelled at her, then she went and chilled wit' that…. You know, I ain't even gonna say what he is, but then I got mad and, well. You know the rest." Wally sure was getting better at blurting out the truth in average words.

"Ohhhhh," Abby and Hoagie replied simultaneously.

Then, Wally couldn't help himself from adding thoughtfully, completely by accident, "I can't believe she can even get me to go to that stupid place. She asks and then it's like, boom!, I'm there."

"It's a super power that all the ladies got, Numbuh Four. Get used to it," Hoagie said simply, as Abby scoffed.

"O….kay…." Wally said slowly. He thought about that for a little while after the conversation was finished minutes later.

It did make perfect sense; a super power. A super power that girls had to make all boys obey them despite their own wants and desires.

Too bad Wally didn't know Hoagie was kidding about it being a super power.

* * *

The searing pain got less and less drastic each day Wally rested, until a week later he was okay. The swelling around his eyes were gone, but he had a scab on his chin and his lip was still a little puffy and throbbed. He had scabs and scars and fading bruises on his arms, and his knuckles were still swollen and in pain.

His back was only slightly sore, and his knee cramped when he walked. His right hip also ached a little bit, still, but Wally was fine. The pain would be over by Christmas.

Wally stepped out the front door of his house, wearing his puffy black jacket with his hands shoved in the pockets and his hat pushing his honey locks down.

He started down the driveway, making his final thoughts of how he would deal with Kuki. While he was recovering, he had been thinking of the perfect things to say to her to patch things up.

Between those thoughts, he began to realize that he would absolutely never ever even be thinking about Kuki so hard one year ago. Instead he would be thinking about sports and food and video games. He also discovered his fantasies were changing. Occasionally, Numbuh Three would pop into his mind's eye in the middle of history or while he was eating cereal or washing his hands. He would imagine her being impressed with him about something, usually. Then he would smirk, and realize what he was doing and the teacher or his mother would ask him what he was smiling about. There was even this one time he caught himself thinking about that 'mouth-to-mouth re-something' she gave him.

At first, Wally was afraid of change. He was terrified of gaining these teenager thoughts. It was happening already, and though Wally was completely reluctant to accept it, he was learning that girls weren't all that bad.

And this was just the beginning of the journey. He won't tell, not on his life. Maybe not even on Kuki's life. NO, scratch that, that was ridiculous. That was pretty much defeating the whole purpose of all of this. Wally hated the very peak of becoming a teenager so much, it was causing him stress.

_Ugh. _

He resorted to trying hard to replay the brawl between him and Michael in his mind. Even though he was now feeling the consequences, it really was fun.

_Ain't it, like, bad to like violence?_

_Whateva._

_The sky is so white-ish gray today._

_I hope that means we'll have snow._

_Santa Clause ain't comin' by my window this year._

_OH MY GOD._

Wally had stunned himself so much, he stopped walking and stood there, eyes wide.

What the HELL was this?

What was this?!

What did he mentally just say?!!

Where the crud did that COME from!?!?

This thing that came out of no where broke into Wally's mind and stole his innocence and belief in magic. Out of no where. What in the world _caused_ that?

The common sense of a teenager caused it.

Wally knew. He knew it. And yet, he tried so very hard to replenish himself back up with false beliefs: He wasn't growing up, he hated girls, Santa Clause always came.

_Yeah, you are. Had to happen sometime._

_Then why do you love one?_

_He's not even real, you dolt._

It hit him like a brick—he seriously was becoming a teenager. The thing was, though, it didn't even scare him as much as it should have. Was this what it was like with everyone?

* * *

Wally gulped. He knocked on the door frame beside the curtain, unaware of Nigel, Hoagie, and Abby peering at him around the corner of the hallway.

"Come in!" Kuki chimed merrily. She sounded so happy that Wally almost felt guilty because she didn't even know it was him at the door. He was catching her off guard.

"Uhh…okay…" he said, swallowing air now. Wally whisked away the curtain to find Numbuh Three in her usual green sweatshirt, matching socks, black tights, and sneakers. She was surrounded on all sides by various stuffed animals; some up to the ceiling, others small enough to hold in one's arms. It made Wally sick, but he tried to ignore that and focus on the purpose of his being in the cruddy room.

_At least all of those things are normal._

"Hi, Wally," she said softly, looking up at him from her spot on the floor with those innocent eyes. He could have melted on the spot.

"Hey…err… Kuki," he greeted awkwardly in return.

They stared at each other for a moment, when she patted the floorboards beside her and pushed her magazines aside. Wally sat down and gazed at the ground, although she was studying his face. He leaned back against the foot of her circular bed.

"Are you okay?" she asked in the same, strange new tone Wally had never heard before.

"Mm--yeah," he piped nervously.

"That fight was really… scary."

The two paused again, the silence being even less awkward than the conversation.

Wally was measuring the time by how many times words got lodged up in his throat and he desired to spit them out, until he finally did.

"Look, I'm—" they both began at the same time.

"Oh, sorry," they said simultaneously again.

Wally was wearing thin from all the stress he had caused on himself from thinking so much.

"Okay, that is IT," he said firmly. He finally broke his gaze on the floorboards and looked Numbuh Three directly in the eyes. "I am sick, and tired of how you always drag me around. Ah-buh-buh!"—she tried to get a word in to argue—"You get me to do whatever you want! The Rainbow Monkey Theme Park, playing Rainbow Monkeys, watching Rainbow Monkeys, then playing tea party, then walking you to class, then dumping your lunch tray for you, then carrying your books, Kuki, I don't even have time to myself any more! I mean, you're my friend and stuff, but I am not your little life-sized Rainbow Monkey that will do whatever you want for you and get dressed up for it."

Wally looked at Kuki for a reply, as he worked on cutting the tension with that knife.

She did it for him, and sighed, as if she had a speech-like response all thought out.

"Uhh.. umm…" she stuttered, instead. In the past three years, Wally has never ever seen Kuki Sanban stutter over anything. Once, at that slumber party he snuck into, and she was asked this crazy Truth question, she did stutter with the answer. "Okay. I'm sorry, Wally. Its just that I thought it was kind of funny you would do whatever I say. That's all."

More silence.

"What, so she doesn't even like spending time with me?"

"What? Of course I do! I love spending time with you! We're friends, remember?" Kuki asked, wrinkling her nose, all cute and everything.

"I-I didn't mean to…" Wally was so busy watching her he forgot how to finish sentences.

"You didn't mean to what?"

"I didn't mean to say that out loud."

Even more silence.

"You know, Wally, sometimes I get the feeling lately that you've been thinking too much."

"What, does that surprise you?" Kuki was exactly right. Wally absolutely didn't want anyone to know how he was changing into a teenager—he tried to argue his way out of this.

"N-no…"

"Why are you stuttering?" he suddenly asked.

"I don't know," Kuki said plainly.

"You've changed too, you know that."

"I didn't mean to make you mad or anything… I was just gonna say—"

"What? What were you going to say?" Wally exploded angrily, kind of like at the theme park, only not as drastic, "That I'm turning into a teenager? Is that it? What if I am? What if I am getting a little different? It's not like I'll stop liking wrestling and comics and start liking you more instead!"

Wally's face relaxed from the intense expression it wore, then fell as he realized what he had shouted.

Kuki was astonished. She gaped at him. Never had she seen him get so hyped up and admit things this way.

"I was going to say… It was kind of nice that you were being so thoughtful all of a sudden."

"Oh—uhm.." Wally cleared his throat. "Okay. Bye?"

Wally stood, and Kuki stood with him.

It was a spontaneous thing, what happened next. As they stood, Wally reached around Kuki, until his arms were enclosed around her, and pulled her to him, pressing against him. Before he even knew what was going on, Wally released and walked rather hurriedly from the room.

Wally hugged Kuki.

Just for a split second.

Still, it was a hug, which for the very first time was given by Wally.

Yeah, he was changing—but for once, he kind of liked the butterflies in his stomach. They gave him a surge of anxious electricity this time.

Looking up, he could have sworn he saw something flash by around the corner of the hallway.

_Just a bird_, he thought.


	11. KND Snow Ball

You can stand unda my umbrella

Ella, ella, ella, eh, eh, eh…

I love that song so much.

Here's chap. 11!!

**Chapter Eleven: **

It was 5:00pm, Christmas Eve, and Wally was tugging his tie through the loop.

He was fastening on a red tie because tonight there would be the annual KND Snow Ball held at moon base. For the occasion, Wally was also clad in a white button up shirt underneath his black vest and black suit jacket, and his _nice_ blue jeans, the pair with no holes or frays in them. He was even wearing his brand new all white DVSs.

Now that his tie was on, he faced the mirror in his bathroom and inspected his hair. Usually, Wally's dandelion mushroom cap was all messy with strands sticking around here and there, but that didn't look stupid or anything. He picked up the comb on his sink he never used and combed the bowl layer.

That was when Wally spotted it up near his hairline: a little red greasy bump.

At first, he scarcely, vaguely recognized what it was. All he knew was that he had seen it on teenagers, and then he knew:

A pimple.

HE WAS ONLY ELEVEN.

IT COULDN'T BE HAPPENING.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" he screeched for a straight few seconds.

He was so shocked he felt light-headed—partly from losing so much breath from screaming, thus tipped back and collapsed.

Xxxx

"Wally? Numbuh Four? Get up," a British voice echoed in Wally's foggy mind. Someone was rocking him forcefully. Slowly, Wally was returning to consciousness.

His eyes opened to see Numbuh One kneeling over him; though he looked a little different without his sly black shades. This way Wally could see that his eyes were baby blue. Nigel was wearing a gray suit with a navy tie and black shoes.

Wally moaned from his limp position on the bathroom floor on his back.

"Hey, y-you up Numbuh Four?" Nigel said, "You really do faint a lot…"

"Ooohhh…" Wally groaned, lifting his head, his eyelids parting just a little.

"Are you okay?" asked Numbuh One.

Wally pushed himself to sit up, head spinning momentarily. "Err.. I think so."

"Good. Come on, we need to go meet up with the others. They're all already there. You can tell me what happened on the way."

In a few moments, the duo were in an aircraft set for moon base. Wally brushed his fingers along his hairline to pinpoint his pimple. Wait, where was it? He pushed up his bangs and leaned towards the window, which showed his reflection almost like a mirror against the inky space sky. Yet, his skin was smooth and unblemished. No pimple.

"Numbuh Four, what are you doing?" asked Nigel suspiciously.

"N-nothin', Numbuh One! Just checkin' up on myself."

"Why did you faint, any way?" he pried.

Of all people, Wally couldn't tell NUMBUH ONE, their obsessive leader, he was turning into a teenager two years early. So he forged the truth.

"I…thought there was something… on my face!"

"And what did you think you saw?" Numbuh One turned to the side from the driver's seat to face Wally, eyes narrowed. Immediately Wally looked out the window before him.

Wally sighed. "A zit."

Numbuh One gasped loudly as the ship hit some turbulence. Nigel was so astonished he froze at the controls.

"NUMBUH ONE!" Wally shouted, leaning over and pulling some levers to prevent the aircraft from crashing.

Nigel got a hold of himself and cleared his throat. "But you were just imagining it, right?" he inquired.

"Yeah, it's not there anymore." Numbuh Four assured.

"Whoo…" Nigel sighed, relieved. "Do you know how serious that kind of thing is, Numbuh Four? Getting acne _this_ early?"

"Ugh, Numbuh One," Wally began, disgusted, "It's not like kids haven't gotten zits before Middle School or something. I'll just wash my face more often, that's all. Like it's wrong to hit puberty a little early, or somethin'."

"Teenagers get zits, Numbuh Four. Not kids. What is with you?"

"Nothing! Nothing is with me! I was just sayin'…."

"Yeah, you better hope you're "just sayin'," or else…"

"Or else _what_?"

"Or else you're gonna be in a whole mess of trouble."

Xxxx

The moon base was decorated with festive streamers and banners and such above the blue tiled floors. Most operatives were up and dancing, the huge ballroom-sized dance floor packed with kids. Everyone was dressed up; every guy had on at least a dress shirt and the girls all wore some kind of skirt or dresses. There were tables around the perimeter where everyone was dancing.

Wally sat at a table, having just arrived to the celebration. Numbuh One had already parted, had gone to search for particularly fellow operatives and have fun.

A glum expression lay on Wally's face as he propped his head up on his elbows. He was thinking about how Numbuh One had freaked out just because he had mentioned the possibility of having a _pimple_. If that's what a pimple would cause, what would Numbuh One do if he knew Wally really was becoming a teenager?

And what was up with that whole pimple thing anyway? Was he imagining it or not? He should go confirm.

As Wally was making his way across the room to get to the hall to the bathroom, some female kids approached him and begged him to dance with them.

"Pleeeease Numbuh Four?" they said in unison.

"I… --err, I gotta go to the bathroom?" he said, "maybe when I come back…."

The girls squealed with delight. They told him they'd wait to see his magnificent dance moves. Dancing was simply a talent of Wally's; it made sense he was great at it, being the hand-to-hand combatant of Sector V and all. So, a lot of girls liked to dance with him.

Last year he wouldn't even had said "maybe when I come back" to girls that wanted to dance with him.

He pushed through one of the many doors in the party room and began down a hallway. There were a few other operatives in the halls, chatting and ambling around. Wally began power-walking—he needed to see what in the world was going on with himself!

Wally stepped quickly around the corner of the hall and suddenly—due to him being deep in thought—collided into someone. He stumbled, but did not fall, and neither did the other person.

"Watch yourself, brah," said a rich looking kid with feathery brown hair, wearing a white suit tuxedo over a black button down shirt, and hot pink cumber bun and tie.

"Yeah, yeah, my bad," Wally grumbled.

"Hey! Aren't you Numbuh Four from Sector V??" the kid called, his cool charm gone all of a sudden.

"Yeah.."

"I'm Numbuh 77! Nice to meet you, man!" Numbuh 77 chimed merrily, grabbing Wally's hand and shaking it vigorously.

"Nice to meet you, too," Wally said slowly, a little gruffly, even.

"See ya on the dance floor, Numbuh Four!" Numbuh 77 called as each boy parted.

Wally was aware that Sector V was considered one of the best Sectors of the KND, if not the best. Many operatives knew of him, so he was kind of used to being greeted that way, greeted with that respect. Wally just didn't care about popularity or coolness. Especially at that moment; he had other things on his mind.

He was the only boy in the bathroom. At once, he scrambled up to a mirror and pushed up his bangs.

His hairline with smooth, definitely not a pimple there. For a second, Wally stared at himself in the mirror. He was pretty cute, if he didn't mind saying so to himself. For a kid, that is, what with his mother's freckles across the bridge of his nose, and his green eyes and elf nose and pouty pink lips.. The thought almost surprised him—Wally never cared about his looks that way before.

Wow, he was really cute…

Ugh, what was he, in love with his new teenage self that looked exactly the same? He disgusted himself as a teenager, but didn't mind it as much as he always thought he would.

Wally walked out of the bathroom, trying to shake this teenage stuff out of his head. It just came back again when he returned to the dance room and was dragged onto the dance floor by a ton of girls, who at first shoved him all around to one another and he danced with each, though he didn't exactly _like_ it. Well, kinda, it was okay. At least he was doing something.

Hit song after hit song was blasting among the sea of kids, as they danced and partied and celebrated Christmas.

That's when Wally spotted Kuki.

Her dark, shiny hair was tied up in a flower-shaped bun, two strands loose to border her face. She was wearing this silky, strapless, slimming, light pink dress that ended at her mid-shin, white gloves up her forearms, a silver necklace with a heart charm on it, and diamond earrings. She was also wearing a pair of two inch white heels.

Wally paused in dancing and looked at her for a second, as she chatted away with her friends that weren't as pretty as her but did look especially nice tonight. One of Kuki's friends pointed Wally out to her, but just as Kuki turned around Wally was pulled away from her sight by another girl that wanted to dance with him. His sight was swallowed up by other kids surrounding him.

It took a moment, but Wally shoved his way off the dance floor, because he wasn't going to let some crazy girls, of all things, stop him, ever.

Wally stumbled over someone's foot, and fell to his stomach. He blinked and hastily got to his feet and dusted off his navy blue jeans, whipping around wildly to catch a glimpse of that fresh light pink she was wearing.

The thing was, though, he was too short, and there were too many people, and he lost sight of her. In fact, Wally didn't know where any of his friends were, there were so many operatives packed into the huge ballroom.

After a song or two, he gave up thrusting and weaving himself between people and burst through a pair of double doors into a hallway.

He took a seat on an empty chair and sat on the edge so his feet extended out on the floor.

The vibrations of a new song, "Makes Me Wonder" by Maroon 5, with some techno beats booming in the background was playing. Wally scowled with disgust, as he hated these pop songs, despite the tune of this one immediately got stuck in his head.

_Man, can these moon base operatives throw some kinda party. _

The double doors beside him jangled, though he was partly deafened by the music so he couldn't hear, but out the corner of his eye he saw the door open.

"There you are, Numbuh Four!" a voice pierced through the music.

Wally looked to his side and examined Hoagie, wearing his white and gray suit with a baby blue dress shirt underneath and red bow tie, as well as his white top hat with a band matching the baby blue shirt.

"Hey, Hoagie," Wally greeted glumly in his accent.

"W-why aren't you dancing?" Numbuh Two asked, taking a seat beside his Australian companion.

"I don't know, I just have some stuff on my mind…"

Hoagie chuckled and was about to crack a joke, but Wally held up a fist to halt him.

"So, uhh," Hoagie said, "I'm surprised you aren't houndin' after Numbuh Three tonight. Grrrahhhwwwl!" He elbowed Wally in the shoulder and grinned mischievously.

Wally choked on spit. "Ew, Hoagie, shut _up_!" he shrieked.

"Well, I'm just surprised your not dancing with her, like usual! Geez!"

"Yeah, whatever."

"Okay, alright, anyway… What happened earlier?" Hoagie asked. "Numbuh One said you fainted! Are you okay?"

Wally was silent for a moment, and leaned forward on his knees, as Hoagie stared at him for an answer.

Hoagie P. Gilligan was his best friend, they shared a lot of secrets and often bailed each other out of trouble.

Right now, Wally felt like he was in trouble. So maybe he could… tell Hoagie about what was really on his mind….

"Oh, I just laid down to take a nap. I didn't faint…" Or maybe not. Maybe when Wally sees it happening to Hoagie, he'll tell him. Yeah, that sounded pretty good.

"On the bathroom floor?"

"The rug is comfy!" Anything to keep up with the lie.

Lies were kid stuff.

Was he still supposed to tell them? Wally didn't know. He was lost to this whole thing.

Hoagie narrowed his eyes at his best friend from behind his yellow goggle lenses.

"O…kay… Moving on… Let's go find Numbuh Five and Numbuh One."

The two stood and went back into the lobby.

There are some weird things that happen to Wally Beatles.

Xxxx

"Hey, _Numbuh Four_," Abby said in a mischievous tone, as if she was going to inform him about a juicy secret.

"Hey, _guys_," said Nigel in the same fashion. It seemed as though he showed no remembrance to all the things Wally said earlier.

"Why are you guys talking like that…?" Hoagie asked, lost.

Abby clutched the heart of Hoagie's gray jacket and whispered something into his ear. He nodded understandingly, smirking, then standing beside Abby, so the three of them faced Wally. They were giving him another look. Three grinning, sly faces gazing into him for a second or two.

"WHAT?!?!" Wally shrieked.

"Oh, Numbuh Three just wants you to meet her in control room F," Nigel said.

"What is going ON?!" Wally continued.

"Nothing, nothing," said Hoagie unconvincingly.

"C'mon, Nigel, what is going on? You guys are supposed to be my best friends!"

"You'll see.." Nigel chimed.

Abby gripped Wally's shoulders, spun him around, pushed him all the way to the door of the hallway he went through earlier, and shoved him through it.

"Guys?!"

He was deserted in the hallway. What was going on? What did he have to see Numbuh Three about?

After discovering the double doors were hopelessly locked, he decided he would have to find out.


	12. Babe

Alright everyone, here's the deal.

This chapter is so short because I split it up for the purpose of suspense.

If I told everything in this whole chapter at once, it would be kind of stupid, I think.

But when I see it is acknowledged that people know this chapter is out,

I'll post the next part.

Also, I wanted to let everyone know that I am probably going to continue my other story, Flirtations, and not end it there.

BUT I'm finishing this first 3

So you guys will just have to wait.

Okay, now that we're all clear… here's chaptah twelve!

**Chapter Twelve: Babe**

Wally rolled his eyes as the door rolled aside to let him pass, as it was DNA activated.

"Okay, Numbuh Three," he grumbled, "what do you want?"

If he had only looked before he spoke, he would have used a completely different tone.

Yards away, Kuki was leaning on the bar facing the humungous glass bulb that withheld the inky, starry space sky. Then of course their being up on the moon illuminated the entire room with a dark blue. It was the most peaceful image Wally had ever seen. Funny, how when memories are in the making, you can never tell.

Of course, there was something horribly wrong with the picture.

Beside Numbuh Three was that suave guy from the hallway; the one dressed all nice with the pearly teeth. His back was to Wally, though.

Numbuh 77.

"Hey Numbuh Four!" Kuki chirped.

_Ugh, why does she always do this… _

"Hi." Wally said strictly.

Kuki's face fell at his tone.

"Hey, hey, Australia boy. How's it goin', man?" Numbuh 77 greeted, walking up to Wally, slapping his hand, patting him on the back. It was as if he hadn't seen him in years, instead of half an hour ago.

Wally looked at Numbuh 77 with a penetrating, cold stare. Him and Numbuh Three alone in a room away from the rest of the party? Not to Wally's liking.

"Oh, so you guys know each other!" Kuki said, or sighed, because she sounded pretty relieved.

"Yeah, we met earlier, babe."

Wally was suddenly enflamed at the terminology. "BABE?" he repeated rather loudly. Fortunately for Numbuh 77, Wally had learned not to act so fast when he becomes angry, obvious by the scars and fading bruises on his skin.

Um, wait. Babe? What does _that_ mean?

Kuki chuckled nervously.

It… they… they're….

"….babe…." Wally repeated weakly, looking at them both with pleading eyes, begging for it not to be true.

Numbuh 77 looked at Wally strangely, and Kuki seemed to be wincing.

"Um… Wally…." Kuki said quietly.

"What?" How interesting was the moonlight's reflection on the tiled floor.

"He's allowed to call me that."

"Why?" Even the stars showed up in it…

"Because… he's my boyfriend."

Silence.

"Oh." Ow. "Okay." Pain. "Whateva." He had never felt that before. "See ya." Teenagers must lie, too, because that was nothing like Wally wanted to say. He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked out of the room.

What a great surprise.


	13. Wally's Secret Job

Ooooh drama in this chapter.

Make this jawn up like some Degrassi son.

Hope ya like it.

**Chapter Thirteen: Wally's Secret Job **

Wally had never felt heartache before. He would have rather fought every boy in Gallagher elementary than feel this way and see Kuki with this guy. At first, he was angry at Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie for egging him to going to the control room. It seemed extremely cruel of them to make it seem like it was a good surprise… But it turned out, they didn't even know. They thought it would be something else, of which they still refused to tell him even after the whole misunderstanding was resolved.

Christmas was long gone. Wally got a new skateboard, some action figures, new clothes. Hoagie gave him an expensive video game that wasn't even on the market yet, Nigel gave him these KND moon bounce sneakers that he could use for battle and for fun, Abby got him some CDs and a whole bag of butterscotch she had this elaborate, riveting story about how she had obtained.

Kuki gave him his present a day late. It wasn't a Rainbow Monkey this year, either—it was a scrapbook, him in each picture. She pasted in snapshots of everything from his sports games to KND ceremonies featuring him. On the last page, there was a photograph of him as Mr. Huggykins and her squeezing him to death; but he was actually smiling a little bit—only because he automatically smiles whenever someone is facing him with a camera. So, it just looked like he was enjoying her hug.

Funny.

She bought everyone else presents---even Danny, aka Numbuh 77, who she drooled over constantly---yet made Wally one. He paid this no mind, though. Wally tried very hard not to even think about her.

Now it was February. Valentine's day was in two weeks.

Danny and Kuki had been going out for over a month—a month and a half. It was like torture for Wally. Almost everyday they would be right in front of him exhibiting their relationship. His arm would be draped around her shoulder or she'd be laughing and hugging him and gazing at him happily. It came out of no where and just stayed, kind of like a random punishment. Wally still liked Kuki; maybe not as much as before. It was kind of as though he was putting his feelings on hiatus for a while. He would wait it out and watch in jealousy. Wally just hoped it wouldn't last too long.

The whole team—and Danny—were sitting in the middle of the food court at the mall.

The six of them were sitting at three tables. Nigel sat across from Hoagie, then Kuki sat across from Danny, then Wally sat across from Abby.

Wally _hated_ this. He treasured the blessed moment he would leave this cruddy mall. Why did Danny always have to be here? Why couldn't Kuki just hang out with him somewhere else?

Obviously, Wally envied Danny with a passion. He was PERFECT: his hair was shaggy and feathery; his eyes were deep blue; he was tall, but not gawky; he was sickeningly polite and charming; he had some coordination when it came to physical activity; he wasn't an idiot, like Wally; he was just everything an eleven-year-old girl could dream of having. To Wally, it felt like they were opposites in that case.

There was one other thing about Danny. There was this fishy way about him…

And Wally saw it whenever he was around other girls. See, Wally didn't trust this guy with Kuki's heart for one millisecond. It was the way Danny's eyes would glint when they examined any girl, including Kuki, and the sugary, suave tone he put in his voice when he talked to the female population.

Wally glared over at him, his arms crossed over the chest of his orange hoodie. He was making Kuki laugh, but Wally was too angry to hear words, or anything but the constant mixture of voices in the background.

This was absolutely unbearable.

Wally stood and pushed in his chair.

"Where ya goin'?" Hoagie asked from a table beside _theirs_.

"C'mon," Wally mumbled and tugged Hoagie by the arm. "You too," he added to Nigel.

Hoagie grabbed his carton of fries, Nigel grabbed his root beer, and they were off. Wally completely ignored whatever Kuki called after him. Was it right to be mad at her? Yes. To Wally, it was as if she was doing this to him on purpose.

"Wally…" Nigel began.

"_What_?" Wally snapped.

"You're being so dramatic." He slurped some of his soda.

"What do you mean?" Wally continued in an agitated tone.

"I mean, with Kuki. And Danny."

Wally was silent for a moment. He was heating up, his face was becoming red.

"Yeah it's not like they're ever—" Hoagie began, but someone interrupted them.

"Hey, wait up, guys!"

Nevertheless, it was Danny, jogging up to them in his preppy clothes and all.

"Kuki and Abby decided to go look at girl stuff, so I just thought I'd catch up with you guys."

Wally rolled his eyes and continued walking as Hoagie and Nigel exchanged glass that said 'Here we go…'

Danny tilted his head inwardly and dashed up to Wally's side.

"So, uh, Numbuh Four," he said.

Wally continued looking on, hands in his pockets, ignoring him. Out of the corner of his eye, Wally saw him look back at Nigel and Hoagie in confusion.

"So, where we going?"

No response.

He continued walking beside Wally, with his hands in the pockets of his 30$ jeans.

This process repeated all day at the mall. Danny spoke to Wally, Wally ignored him or grumbled in response if the words spoken were worth it.

At one point, Hoagie pulled Wally aside into some toy store.

"Why can't you just _try_?" Hoagie whispered.

"Try what?" Wally said in the worn-out, distressed tone he had been using all day.

"Try to be nice to him?"

Wally rolled his eyes and shoved Hoagie out of his way. He didn't want to hear it and would walk home through the chilly air if it wasn't a mile down a busy highway.

He came out from the corner Hoagie herded him into to see Danny speaking to a girl Wally had never seen before.

Danny went to a private school, which is why Wally had never seen him before, or why Kuki had never seen him before and fallen in "love" with him.

The girl had blonde hair and a big hot pink pearl bracelet on to match her hot pink Hollister shirt and denim mini skirt. Wally was starting to think these brand name rich kids were real gay wads. They dressed like teenagers!

Wally pretended to be looking at some items on a shelf behind them, then moved some items away to peer through the little holes in the wall of it.

"So, what time tonight?" Danny was whispering.

"Eight,"

"What theater?"

"Regal."

"Perfect. See you there"

"Okay," the girl smiled sweetly. Danny did so in the same fashion.

They parted, as Danny walked up the row and Wally quickly scrambled to the end of his row. It would be suspicious if he stayed parallel to where Danny was speaking to the girl.

Wally stared hollowly at the back of a box, as he saw Danny walk right past his aisle up ahead.

Regal. Eight-o-clock.

Wally had a date.

Xxxx

They were all home from the mall, Wally laying on his side on the couch, all by himself. He stared into the TV as though he were a zombie, mind in the hands of the program.

That is, until someone plopped down at the end of his feet, awakening Wally from his trance.

Slowly, almost cautiously, Wally turned his head to see who it was that disturbed him. He saw Numbuh Three looking at the television wearily, as if she had a hard day or something.

"What?" she said softly and turned to him.

Wally continued to bore his eyes into her face, silently, face blank, almost comically. He wasn't doing it for any particular reason.

Numbuh Three seemed to have gotten taller lately. Only an inch or so…

And something else. Wally couldn't identify what it was at all, but it was different.

"What?" Kuki repeated.

"Did you get a haircut?"

"No…"

Right, because it wasn't her hair, even though at the moment it was tied up in a messy and adorable bun. Wally scanned her up and down, from her silky Rainbow Monkey pajama bottoms to her matching lavender rainbow monkey T-shirt. When he looked back up at her face again it was scrunched up in an estranged expression.

Wally narrowed his eyes and cocked his head calmly. This thought that there was something different had been in the back of his mind for a while now. He was just too mad before to look at her and find what it was.

Wait, when did he stop being mad at her for torturing his poor heart?

Oh, right… When Danny was talking to that girl and making what sounded like a secret date.

"Oh yeah, Kooks…" Wally said, eyes angling over to the TV again.

"What?" she asked for the third time.

There was something about Wally, too, that had changed. Kuki seemed to be the only one who knew it. He seemed calmer… and less headstrong. A lot less.

"At the mall today…" Should he tell her about the clues leading to the fact that her boyfriend may be cheating on her?

"Mm-hmm?"

"Oh, ahem, um, at the mall today, I saw this um… quarter on the ground," he lied, "and it said it was marked from.. err.." Wally wasn't too good at dates, "7…10… ninety… two…."

"1792?"

"Yeah! That one!"

"Oh." Kuki hugged her knees up to her chest and Wally bent up his knees to give her some more room.

Wally hadn't had a moment alone with Kuki ever since Danny came along. He realized this and thought he should savor it.

"So, you and your…um… and Danny hang out together a lot, eh?"

"Yeah." Kuki replied quietly. She seemed tired.

"Ya tired or somethin'?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Oh." Wally decided to be quiet for a while.

Even though he was mad at Kuki, he couldn't help but care for her somewhat. It came to be Wally's job to keep her okay; emotional, physical, mental-wise. Wally's job, not Danny's. That made him feel a bit important to her. This was Wally's secret job.

Wally glanced over at Kuki again, whose eyelids were slowly drooping. This was his chance to say it.

"Idon'ttrustthatDannyguy" Wally blurted out quickly, jolting up a little and looking hard into Kuki's half-open eyes.

She jolted upwards as well and furrowed her brow at him skeptically. "…What?"

"Danny. I don't like him." Wally stated curtly.

Kuki's violet eyes widened away from the iris's. "What do you mean?" she asked incrediculously.

"_Look_," Wally began in an abrupt manner, tilting his head inward and hardening his eye contact, "there's something weird about him that I don't trust and I don't think it's good at all."

Kuki looked at him, a little sore in the eyes. "Well," Kuki retorted in a mocking sugar-coated tone, "I don't see it, and honestly, Wally, I think you're jealous of him."

Wally's lips parted in dismay, but it looked like they parted from insult.

Sheila was right on the money.

"If there is one feeling I don't have about that sap it's jealousy," Wally shot, "so don't compliment yourself,"

With that, he hopped off the couch and started towards the door.

"Wait, Wally…" Kuki said, suddenly almost bashfully. There was only the audio from the television for a moment.

"What?" Wally snapped, back still to her.

"What makes you not trust him?"

Spinning around and gripping the armrest of the sofa, Numbuh Four said, "I'm just too blind from jealousy to realize what it is," in such a venomous, dry, sarcastic tone that he really sounded like he meant it.

Now Kuki's lips were parted as Wally left the room—but hers because of astonishment.

xxxx

Wally trotted in a suspicious fashion behind Danny and the girl he was speaking with earlier at the mall. The pair were walking down the hall inside the Regal to a theater. Wally didn't even purchase a ticket; he knew he was sly enough to follow them without the delay of standing in line at the booth. Plus, he didn't know what they were seeing.

Sure, it may have looked unusual that he was periodically ducking behind trash bins as he stalked. That was, if anyone had noticed him.

From what Wally saw, Danny had something with this girl—the same kind of something he had with Kuki. Wally's gut-feeling never did fail him; though it was inevitable that it had to do so one of these days.

Danny was definitely a ladies' man; despite he was only twelve (a year older than all of Sector V). That's what the subtle characteristic to him was; he flirted, even when he supposedly had a girl.

Wally followed the two into a theater, which was still illuminated from above. On the way in, Wally snatched a bucket of popcorn from an innocent kid a few grades below him. Then he went on in and seated himself three rows behind Danny and the blonde girl, in clear view of them.

More people began filling up the theater, then the room darkened until the only source of light was the screen. Still, Wally could decipher the back of his subjects' heads because of their blue outlines from the light hitting them.

For a while, Wally munched on his popcorn and studied the couple, completely unaware of the movie.

All they did was sit beside each other, both slouched down in their seats. After a time, once they were both sitting upright, Wally saw Danny's arm slowly make his way over around the girl's shoulders.

That was it. Danny was cheating. Wally's lips parted in astonishment and his eyes narrowed in hate and disbelief. How could Danny be doing this? How could he be getting away with it? With betraying Kuki?

Wally stuffed another handful of buttery popcorn in his mouth and chewed with his eyes almost growing red and the inside of his chest growing hot with rage.

Since he was so sick of this kid, he turned his attention over to the movie screen.

Wait, what was that?

Wally saw a movement out of the corner of his eye from Danny's direction, and immediately looked down to watch.

The girl, who was on Wally's left, leaned over and pecked Danny on the cheek.

Wally's face fell.

For some reason, it pained Wally that the girl didn't even know he was cheating.

Wally ate more popcorn. It was about the middle of the movie. He watched the rest through fiery eyes, watching the hell-bidden couple three rows away compulsively.

When the credits finally rolled and the lights above came back to life, Wally sat and watched Danny and the girl stand up.

There was this look Wally had, and could put on his face whenever he wanted. It was the most venomous, deathly, insulting, disgusting look he could put on his face. He gave it to people when he was absolutely furious; when he was in genuine rage and couldn't believe what he was seeing.

When Danny walked up the aisle (gripping his girl's hand) between the rows of seats in the theater, Wally wore that beady look on his face. Danny looked up, and his eyes grew wide in surprise and maybe even fright when he saw Wally's face.

Danny knew he was in a lot of trouble.

Xxxx

His hands were clenched in white-knuckled balls.

His teeth were clenched together so tight his gums were pulsing.

His eyes were red with fury, hate, anger.

Wally was ready to rip a head off.

He shoved open the door of the Regal forcefully, then the next one, and walked right up to Danny. He was leaning back against the wall of the building, hands pocketed, eyes on the ground.

"YOU'RE LUCKY I DON'T PUNCH YOUR FRICKIN' HEAD OFF YOUR BODY!" he screeched.

Danny sprung to life, and threw his arms over his face and curled his knee up to his chest to protect himself.

Wally grabbed the chest of Danny's purple polo shirt, and thrust him back to the wall.

Danny's jaw was actually trembling! "I-I…"

"You _what_?" Wally said through gritted teeth. "Who was that girl?"

"She…" Danny tried under Wally's glare and harsh expression, "She's my girlfriend, okay!" He tried to push Wally off of him, but Wally ran him right back into the same spot with a 'thump'.

"I thought Kuki was your girlfriend," Wally said through tight lips.

Danny was silent.

A car horn beeped from beside them.

"Busted." Wally whispered. He pulled Danny off the wall and pushed him towards the curb. He stumbled but didn't fall, glancing back fearfully and hastily opening the car door and hopping in the passengers seat.

Time for some well-deserved payback…


	14. The Bet

So here's the actual chapter 14.

You know what, I'm getting rid of that author's note already.

Enjoi.

Oh, and I'm bringing Wally's accent back so all spelling mistakes inside quotations are intentional.

PS: There are about two more chapters of the bet… D:

I don't own "Black Christmas," "Music and Lyrics," "Fast and Furious III: Tokyo Drift," or Pacific Sun Clothing Co., or DVS skate team/ co., or Volcom skate co.

**Chapter Fourteen: The Bet**

There were two missions, then Valentine's Day was two days away.

One mission, Count Spankulot and the Toilenator teamed up to rob a tasty cake factory to win first prize for the Adult Only Bakery Contest. To sum it all up in Wally's point of view, they're both losers who have never won any contest their whole lives and that includes this cruddy Bakery Contest. Wally would have known why they wanted to win it if he hadn't been calming down after the beating he gave them.

The other mission, they had to stop the Delightful Dorks from destroying the Hendrie Middle School Valentine's Day dance. Wally didn't understand why they had to protect the teens and beat up the Delightful Children, but again he missed the vague explanation Abby gave.

Every punch Wally threw was made with Danny's face in his mind. He hated that kid more than Micheal Phillips, which was very bad because he hated him so much even after beating his sorry face.

So two days before Valentine's day, Wally and Hoagie made a trip to the local Blockbuster to traditionally grab the three Friday night movies to watch with the others.

The two boys were walking down the sidewalk, having just crossed the final street their destination was on.

"Did Kuki and Danny break up?" Hoagie asked, breaking the silence in the air between them that Wally was perfectly comfortable with.

"Wot?" Wally snapped to attention and looked squarely at Hoagie's profile. His hands were in the pockets of his beige slacks, as his face angled towards the sidewalk.

"Well, he hasn't been around for a while. Haven't you noticed that?"

"Yeah…" Wally said, processing this piece of information. He hadn't told anyone about their confrontation at the movies the other day. "Uhh… Hoags…" Wally began sheepishly.

"Yeah?" Hoagie replied, looking up from the ground.

"Oi caught him with anotha girl at the movies the otha day…."

Silence. "What do you mean?"

"It wasn't Kuki."

Hoagie stopped walking, and stared hard at his Australian friend.

"Are you _serious_?!"

"Yeah… Oi still haven't told Kooks about it."

"Wow….—wait, you call her _Kooks_?"

They began walking again.

"Oh please, ev'ryone does!"

"Aha, Danny doesn't." Hoagie grinned at Wally.

Wally rolled his eyes and barged through the Blockbuster double doors.

"So, one horror, one romance, one action?" Hoagie confirmed.

"As usual," Wally replied.

The two scoured around the aisles of DVDs, and ended up choosing "Black Christmas" for the scary movie, "Music and Lyrics" for the romance, and "Fast and Furious III: Tokyo Drift" for the action.

As Hoagie and Wally walked up to pay for the rentals, he heard a familiar laugh. A cursed laugh.

"The devil 'imself…" Wally muttered.

"I think the saying is 'speak of the devil,'" Hoagie chuckled.

"Not in this case…"

Wally spun around towards Danny Cantonelli. Stupid Italian charm….

"Numbuh Four! D-didn't expect to see you here…" Danny began, a look of pain and fear, even startlement on his face. He was there with some other kids, who he walked away from for the moment.

"Mm." Wally grunted. He gritted his teeth in rhythm, crossed his arms across his chest, and narrowed his eyes. Hoagie set his elbow on Wally's shoulder and tucked one ankle behind the other as he leaned over.

Danny sighed. "Okay. Did you tell her?"

"Tell who wot?" Wally shot quickly.

Danny rolled his eyes. "You know who and what."

"Oi think you should refresh moi mem'ry." Wally uncrossed his arms and began rolling up his sleeves.

"Okay, alright!" Danny stepped in closer towards Wally. He peered at Hoagie to go away.

"He can hear woteva Oi can."

Danny whispered under his breath and rolled his icy-blue eyes. "Did you tell Kuki about the movies?"

"Wot about the movies?" Wally smirked.

Danny sighed. "That I wasn't _with_ her."

"You _weren't_?" Wally dropped his jaw dramatically and faced Hoagie, who did the same and shook his head in mock shame towards the playa.

"No. I was with Rebecca Brown."

"Wow. It's weird you would tell me this all of a sudden, Danny! Because, y'know… Oi do tend to get a little violent when it comes to people who break moi friend's hearts." Wally leaned in as he said this.

"Oh, please, Wally, you couldn't take me." Danny held out his palm straight and it zoomed about three inches about the top of Wally's head.

He suddenly lurched forward, but Hoagie automatically grasped him by his arms.

"HOIGHT AIN'T NOTHIN' COMPARED TO STRENGTH, YOU LITTLE PUNK!"

Wally squirmed and whipped around under Hoagie's grasp.

People were starting to stare at them.

"You know Wally, I'm not the only one who treats her wrong."

Wally relaxed and Hoagie released him. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh yeah, she tells me all the time about how you're always so mean to her."

"_What_?"

"No lie. Yeah, figures."

"What _figures_?"

"You _are_ a pretty violent kid. Girls hate that. No wonder she'll never go out with you."

Wally's jaw dropped, for real this time.

"She… she would, too!"

"I bet you wouldn't even ask her out for Valentine's Day."

The store stood still.

Wally and Hoagie's eyebrows both perked up.

"You bet?"

"Shit, I dare you to ask Kuki Sanban out for Valentine's Day."

Hoagie interjected for a moment. "You know, he never turns down a bet or a dare." Wally nodded coolly as he stated so.

"Not unless he _can't_ ask her out for Valentine's Day."

"I'm no chicken," Wally said in a dangerously low tone.

"Yeah, okay, I didn't say that, but I also didn't say it's not possible for her to already have plans."

Wally's lips parted in shock.

"Does she?!" Hoagie blurted.

"Absolutely. With yours truly." Danny smirked easily and slithered away in stride. His posse of friends followed and sent Wally snobbish scowls.

Wally's eyes searched around helplessly for a few moments.

Hoagie clapped him on the back supportively, and said, "You could steal Kuki Sanban from any other guy, especially that dork, like this," then snapped his fingers.

"You think so?" Wally asked, unenthusiastically.

"Sure! With a bit of a makeover…. And some new clothes… and maybe even some romance lessons, you'll be perfect!"

"Where can I get all that done?!" Wally asked.

"Yours truly." He said in a mocking tone, and they both laughed and checked out the three DVDs. "And maybe Abby can help too."

"Ehh…"

"Wally, she already knows you like Kuki."

"I don't like Kuki." Wally stated plainly as they walked out of the store.

Hoagie bit his lip and smiled slightly at Wally, then bobbed his head and the comfortable silence returned.

* * *

"Numbuh Five knows you ain't playin' her, right?" confirmed Abby.

She was standing with her arms crossed, weight shifted to one hip, and a look of slight disbelief on her face.

Wally and Hoagie stood in front of her, nodding simultaneously in response.

"Boy, I can't believe it takes you a bet to ask your girl on a date!"

"Yeh, okay, Numbah Foive, Oi get it. Now can yeh help me do it?" Wally pleaded. He seemed embarrassed.

"Sho'. Anything for a friend." She smirked.

"Okay, so what first?" asked Hoagie.

"Spin around."

Wally looked at her blankly.

"Do it, boy, or Numbuh Five is out."

Wally rotated around lousily, pouting.

"Okay, first off, we need to work on your look. Now, I know you got some money saved up from Christmas, so ya better go fetch that."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait," Wally said, thrusting his hands up. "Oi thenk Kooks looks me just how Oi em."

"But she'll like you even better if you just change yo' clothes!"

Hoagie snickered.

"Ugh… fine…"

Two hours later they were at the mall, walking around, deciding where to buy Wally's new clothes he didn't want at all.

"What's wrong with moi clothes Oi'm wearin' _now_?" Wally whined.

"Dude, she already said, if you get new clothes, it'll give Kuki the message you actually want to go on this date!" Hoagie replied.

Wally scoffed.

"Okay, this store is cool. We just need one outfit…" Abby said.

They walked inside of the Pacific Sun clothing store they stumbled upon. Kelly Rowland's (feat. Eve) song "Like This" echoed through the store.

"Ahh!" Abby squealed, and began swaying to the beat.

"Abby, CONCENTRATE," Hoagie said after he ogled her moves for a moment.

"Right, right." She snapped still again, but then began humming her song. She clutched Wally by the arm of his current orange hoodie and led him over to the men's half of the store.

"Abby, this is a teenaga store!"

"It don't matta, as long as their clothes make ya look nice!"

Wally scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"How much money did yah bring, ag'in?"

"100$" he replied.

"Okay, we outtah keep the size one biggah then what ya actually wear so that ya mom don't freak when you grow outta these clothes."

"Alroight."

"We'll get yah a shirt, hoodie, jeans, and them shoes ya wore to the Snowball. They wah cool."

"Thanks.." Wally grumbled.

First, they looked through the shirts. They picked out this blue t-shirt with a Volcom stone logo on it in a scratchy style, which cost $19.95. It took a lot of debate for the shirt, because there were many to choose from, but that was the final choice after they went through the process of elimination.

Next, Abby choose a normal pair of faded, light blue jeans for him to wear, and Hoagie found him a hoodie on sale for $25. It was a black zip-up hoodie with the DVS logo screened across the chest in white. With the jeans being $39.50, there was $15.55 left for some accessories.

There was this blue and black Zoo York belt that matched perfectly, but it cost $3.50 more than the rest of Wally's money, so Hoagie lent Wally $5, including tax.

When Wally tried the clothes on in the fitting stall, he found that the small T-shirt was regularly baggy for a boy, and the jeans were about four centimeters longer than his legs, and looked baggy, too, clinging from his skinny legs, but fit with the belt. Then the hoodie looked baggy in the same way as the shirt, and Wally even tucked in the front of his T-shirt so his belt could be seen.

He walked out of the dressing room and Hoagie and Abby applauded.

"Looks pretty cool, man."

"Yeah, you do look cool, Wally."

They paid for the clothes and left the mall, traveling back to the tree house in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.

It was unanimous that they go practice the 'gentleman lessons' as far away from Numbuh Three's room as possible.

Wally dressed back up in all of his new clothes, as well as his white DVSs, which only had scuff marks on the toes, as the trio stood around in a room behind a bolted door that was behind a chained up door that only Numbuh Two was allowed to hold.

"Alright, we all know you are not good with girls, Numbuh 4," Hoagie began, snickering.

Even though that was all he said, Abby snatched her hat from her head and whipped him on the arm with it.

"WHAT?! I was just going to explain—"

"Okay, well you got no place explainin' to Numbuh 4 that he is not good with girls because _he's_ not the only one!" Abby placed her hat back atop her head and adjusted it, clearing her throat.

"Now, Numbuh 4." She said, turning to him and Hoagie scoffed and rolled his eyes in disagreement.

"What?" Wally said dully. He was sitting on a crate pushed against a wall.

"How do you greet a girl?"

"Are you _serious_?"

"Yeah, Numbuh Five ain't wastin' no time on stupid questions! What do you say to a girl when you first see her?"

"Umm… Abby, Oi don't even say anehthing to girls."

Abby looked down, and squeezed the bridge of her nose. "This is gonna take a while…" she muttered.

"Okay, Hoagie, could you show Numbuh Four how to greet a girl?"

"Sureee…" Hoagie said, in a suave tone that reminded Wally of Danny. Hoagie stepped closer to Abby, got down on one knee, and took her hand. Slowly, he lifted it to his lips, kissed it softly, and purred, "Hellooo," grinning dazzlingly.

Abby looked at him as if he had just sprouted an extra eye or took off his pilot's cap (both very rare, strange things to happen) for a while.

"Yeeeahh.. Wally, never do that," she finally said, then added, "Numbuh Five needs herself some hand sanitizer…"

"OH, COME ON!" Hoagie bursted. "That was perfect!" Then he turned to Wally and said, "Trust me, Wally, ladies dig that,"

Wally watched all of this in amusement, though he wore a dull, royally bored face.

"Okay, Numbuh Four, to greet a girl, just say 'hey'."

"_Hey_? You say '_hey_'?

"Yes, and don't over do it and act like a professional sugah daddy like _somebody_" She directed her gaze at Hoagie, who again rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Try it."

"Hey…?" Wally said in a tone that sounded like a question.

"No, really, say it like you're sayin' it to ya date."

Wally hopped from the box, and said in the most casual tone he could put on, "Hey." He even curved his lips into a crooked grin like the guys in the chick flicks do.

"Yeah! That's perfect! Wow, a lot betta than Numbuh Five expected!"

"Yeah, yeah, nice," agreed Hoagie.

"Aww, well, ya know.." Wally responded, leaning back on the crate.

"Alright, now let's teach 'im how to talk," said Hoagie.

"Oi know how to talk!" piped Wally, offended.

"No, he means how to make convasation," Abby explained.

"Ohhh,"

"Alright, Numbuh Five is gonna let y'all know the secret to what girls like talkin' 'bout," said Abby. She leaned in towards them intently, as Hoagie leaned in eagerly. "Themselves."

Hoagie's mouth dropped. "Girls like talking about themselves." He repeated in disbelief. "Figures."

"Yep, it's true. So to start off a conversation, all ya gotta do is talk about the girl. Compliment her or somethin'. Or talk about somethin' you heard she did, but make sure it ain't a rumor, ya get it?"

Wally nodded, processing her words.

"So, what would you say?" asked Hoagie, who now sat on the crate beside the one Wally leaned back on.

Wally thought about it for a moment. "Oh, c'mon gois, this is so embarrassing!" he squealed.

"Well, we're only doin' it 'cause we know how bad you want Numbuh Three!"

"What?! Oi don't _want_ her!"

"Well, do you want to be her boyfriend?"

"No, Oi just don't want that two-timin', scumbag, fake ass punk datin' 'er!"

"Why not?"

"'Cause! He's a lia'!"

Of course, Wally knew he wanted to go out with Numbuh Three. He was just lying about it still…

Abby and Hoagie exchanged glances.

"Wait," said Abby, "do you have a crush on Numbuh Three, or not?"

Wally looked back and forth from Hoagie to Abby, who both wore puzzled, inquiring expressions at him.

"Oi…. Do. Yes. Oi do. Oi have a crush on Numbuh Three."

Abby and Hoagie's jaw dropped and they began cracking up.

Hoagie pulled a square device out from his back pocket, pressed a button, squeaky noises were heard, then pressed another button on the top.

"Oi…. Do. Yes. Oi do. Oi have a crush on Numbuh Three," said the device.

Abby fell on the ground laughing, as Wally lunged for the device. Hoagie was too busy laughing to get a good grip on the tape recorder, therefore Wally snatched it, slammed it to the ground, and began stomping it to pieces violently, then stomped those pieces to pieces, and those pieces to insignificant crumbs.

"YOU JERK!" Wally screeched as the two other operatives wiped tears from their eyes.

"Man, Numbuh Five wouldn't have let him do anything with it," said Abby as she rose to her feet and dusted herself off.

"How can Oi be so sure?!"

"'Cause, we friends! He just did it fo' kicks, anyway. That was pretty funny."

Wally rolled his eyes and looked at the two with a pouty face, then said, "Okay, what else are ya teachin' me so Oi can foinally leave?"

They spent the next hour teaching Wally what else to say to Kuki, how to compliment her, when he should hold her hand, when to smile, when to laugh, and the words to say to steal Danny from her.

"Whoi do Oi need ta tell her?" Wally whined.

"Because, Danny would tell her everything if you don't; and he'll make it sound bad," said Hoagie.

"Loike wha' do ya mean?"

"He'll say ya only went out with her 'cause he bet you to, but tell her you're really doin' it 'cause he's such a sleaze ball and cheated on her and ya didn't want him to go out with her."

Wally furrowed his brow. "So… what should Oi say?"

"What Numbuh Five just said: 'Danny cheated on you and went to the movies to another girl and admits it, and I wanted to go out with you before he can because he'll twist the story around and make it look like I'm the bad guy."

"Roight.. should Oi mention that he bet me to do it?"

Abby crossed her legs and arms and pondered this over for a moment. "Yeah," she decided, "it's best ta be honest."

"Alroight, Oi'll tell her then."

"What'll you say?" asked Hoagie.

"Oi dunno… Oi'm not the kinda bloke to plan this crud out. Oi'll say whateva comes to mind.

"Alright, man, well Valentine's Day is tha day afta tomorrow, so ya need to ask her now."

"Okay, lemme just change outta these clothes…"

Wally told the others to leave so he could have his privacy, therefore the two walked across the room to the heavily bolted locked door, which Hoagie unlocked and pushed open.

Then the two were out of sight, and Wally undressed, actually folded his new clothes, and changed back into his regular orange hoodie and baggy holed jeans and white under tee.

He inhaled deeply, stuffing the new outfit back into the Pacsun bag, then exited the room himself.

Then, spontaneously, he remembered something:

Numbuh Five was turning twelve in two days.

* * *

Wally found Numbuh Three drawing and coloring a picture of a rainbow and some forest animals on the couch in the TV room on the fifth floor of the tree house. There were ten floors in the whole place.

He hovered over her shoulder, as she didn't even sense him behind her.

Or maybe she did, because she chimed, "Hi Wally!" as she maneuvered the colored pencils around in different directions.

"Hey." He said simply, hopping over the couch and making her bounce up a little bit by doing so. "Nice pictah!" he piped in a completely different tone. He had to remember to compliment.

"Aw, you think so? I've only been working in it for a few minutes."

Wally lifted the single sheet of paper from her hands. "No, it actu'lly…" he gazed down at it for a few moments, then looked back up at Kuki, "… looks pretty good."

Kuki stared at him strangely. "Did you get taller?"

Wally looked at her for a moment. He didn't expect that. "Err, uhh… Oi dunno? Oi'll check latuh."

"I mean, I usually have to look down at you more… and… not really now. Here, stand up." She put down the colored pencil in her hand and stood, then grabbed Wally's hands and pulled him up along with her.

She held her hand horizontally at her brow level and tried to keep it as straight as she could as it glided to the top of Wally's forehead.

"Wait, wait, turn around.." Kuki said, spinning Wally around. She turned around as well, then backed into him softly, holding her hand at the top of her head, and grabbing Wally's hand and dropped it on top of his.

When they turned around, and looked at the gap between their hands, they saw it was about two inches. There used to be about four.

"Wow, not bad," Kuki said.

"Roight, anyway, Kooks…" Wally said.

"What?"

"Do you want to go owt with meh fah Valentoine's Day?"

No answer.

Kuki stared at him, awestruck. Her eyes widened, and mouth gradually dropped.

She stared like this for a few seconds.

"Geez, Oi mean, if you don't want tah.."

"Wait, wait, whoa, what?"

"Oi said, do you want to go owt fah Valentoine's Day?"

Kuki collapsed back onto the couch.

"Kuki?" Wally repeated after a moment's silence. He thought she fainted, and leaned over to confirm so to find her with her hands over her face and her whispering something.

She sat back up and looked at Wally wearily. "Wait, you know I'm going with Danny! What are you doing?" Kuki asked suspiciously.

Wally sighed. He had to tell her the truth. He sat down next to her on the couch.

"Danny is…" he paused to think of the words, face towards the ceiling while searching.

"Danny is _what_?"

"He's cheatin' on yeh with this sheila named Rebecca."

Silence.

Numbuh Three stared at Wally blankly for a moment, as his eyes darted all over her face, trying to read her.

Wally thought he heard a small noise from her. Then he heard it again.

"Are yeh…?"

Kuki began chuckling lightly, then looked away, but looked back at him with a lopsided smirk (which made him quiver and widen his eyes for a split second, even gulp) and starting to snicker. Soon she was laughing, holding her stomach, cracking up.

Wally watched for two whole minutes as she clutched herself and laughed.

"Wally…" she breathed. "That's ridiculous!" Kuki exhaled, as she wiped a tear from her eye, the way Abby and Hoagie had an hour ago.

Wally stared at her coldly. He felt… angry for some reason. "Look," he growled, getting her attention, "Oi wouldn't loie to yew about this, so could yeh just go out with meh?"

Kuki squinted at him. "Wally, this… is… like, do you…"

"Oi know… its just--"

"I don't believe you."

….

"…._Wot_?"

"Why are you doing this?"

"Kuki, Oi'm not loin'! Oi swear!"

"Are you jealous or something?"

"Are yew KIDDING me? Kuki, Oi'm… Oi'm tryin' to tell yeh!"

Kuki inhaled deeply, closing her eyes.

"Okay, tell me then."

Wally looked at her with his mouth trying to shape words again.

"Alroight…" he began, "The otha noight Oi was eht tha movies, and Oi saw Danny there, and he was wit' this blonde sheila, and he had his arm around her, and then when tha movie was ovah, Oi got 'im outsoide and told him he was so busted and Oi'm not loin'! Ask Hoagie, he was wit' me today, 'cause Oi saw 'im today at the Blockbustah, and Oi totally embarrassed him," Wally chuckled as he said that, then continued, "but Oi did it all feh yew!" Wally finished with a pleading look.

He didn't know if she would scream, cry, or hit him, for the type of news this was, but gave her a pair of puppy-dog eyes, which she used to give him. Whenever she wanted to spend time with him, whenever she was begging him to do something he was really reluctant to do with her.

"Really? Did you punch him?" she asked with a charming grin, though her eyes were very sad.

"No, but Oi shoved him into a wall. Oi was about to… but…"

"But what?"

"Since yew do loike him, for some reason Oi don't think Oi could evah undastand, Oi didn't wanna hurt him."

"Thanks, Wally." Kuki said. She hugged him around the neck. He chuckled awkwardly, and patted her on the back, though he didn't exactly wrap his arms around her to hold her. Wally hoped she would get the message he was disgusted with hugs, but only kept clinging onto him.

"Are yeh sad?" Wally asked.

Kuki nodded in his shoulder.

"Are yeh gonna croi?"

Kuki thought for a moment. She lifted her head and looked Wally in the eyes. "Not for him."

"Good."

Kuki's arms slid down Wally's torso (making him shudder) and back to her sides, though one hand latched onto his. "C'mon, let's go call him," she said sadly.

"Why?"

"I'm gonna break up with him."

"Really?!" Wally's eyes widened.

"Mmhm."

_YES_.

* * *

"Hello? Is Danny there?"

Wally sat cross legged across from Kuki as she spoke on the phone in the tree house kitchen. She sat leaned on her palm, legs out beside her.

"Hey _Danny_." Kuki greeted suggestively, grinning up at Wally.

"Hey Kuki! What's up?"

"Not much, just around the tree house."

"Oh, cool. Same here."

"So how was the movies the other night?"

"…."

"Yeah, you're really pathetic, you know?" Kuki sang.

"Wait, Kuki, who told you?"

"Wally." Kuki replied affectionately.

"Oh, jeez. Me and him just have a little bet going on, he'll really do anything to win a bet. Competitive kid, huh?"

"……Bet?"

Wally immediately began waving his arms, mouthing words at Kuki, clothes rustling in the silence as she listened.

Kuki dropped the mocking tone. She looked up with tight, angry lips at Wally.

"Okay. Well whoever did what, Danny, I'm breaking up with you. And for the record, you're really not funny. At all. And you're hair is really dry." Kuki stood up and slammed the corded phone into the receiver hanging up on the wall.

Kuki looked down at Wally for a moment, still angry.

"Why is every boy around here so pathetic?" Kuki said, stepping over him but carelessly kicking his leg, as he was still sitting.

"Owwww…." He hissed, getting up to his feet, and following her from the tree house, though hopping because his shin hurt. "Wait, Kooks!" he shouted.

He caught up to Numbuh Three, who's hands were curled into fists, then cupped his hand around her shoulder and spun her around.

Tears were dripping down her cheeks. "You're a jerk, too," She said.

"Wait, okay, well, yeah it was a bet, me asking yeh out, but honestly, Kooks, Oi'm done with bets and dares already! God, because of bets, Oi've thrown up," Wally held up fingers to count on, "passed out, broken an arm, gotten in a cruddy fist fight for, even ran around the neighborhood-butt naked because of! Oi'm done! Oi would go out with yeh even if it wasn't a bet!"

"Okay, let's do it this way then. If you want to go out with me so badly. Wally, do you want to take me out for Valentine's Day?"

Wally was surprised she did this. "…. Yeah, Oi do."

"Great, pick me up at my house at around 5:30. We can go to the carnival." And with that, she smiled falsely and practically dived into the elevator Wally didn't even know they were standing beside.

That didn't go exactly how he planned, but at least he finally was going on a date with Kuki Sanban.


End file.
